For Family
by Ridley C. James
Summary: Between Brothers Series. Jack Dalton is a man who understands all too well that in one terrible moment the world can change, but on a sunny summer California morning he's once more reminded how fragile those he holds closest really are. A near trajedy sparks a chain of events that prove there isn't much one won't do for family.
1. Chapter 1

For Family

By: Ridley C. James

A/N: This is the second story in my Between Brothers AU. You will need to have read _Fireflies in the Rain_ or this will make no sense at all and you will be left to wonder what in the world is this crazy writer going on about. You may still wonder that but trust me there will be less confusion if you read these in order. I took a little break from reality and indulged in this story so I thought I would share to pass the NINE whole days before the second season starts! Can you believe it? I so appreciate those who took a leap of faith and read the first story in this series. Your comments really encouraged me to continue so I hope this second one doesn't disappoint. PS-for the reader who asked if Mac would still go to the Army and join Phoenix in this AU-a resounding Yes! And trust me, the choice to Go Army does not go over well with one certain Delta operator. But first, a little more back story…and some familiar faces.

RcJ

"Here we are," Mama Colton said as she placed two plates on the table with a dramatic flourish, sliding the dish with the biggest piece of pie over to Jack Dalton's kid brother, Angus MacGyver, who since his most recent birthday insisted on being called simply by 'Mac'. "My special recipe buttermilk pie for the most handsome customer of the day."

Jack smirked at the ten year old whose face actually pinked at the high praise. Whether the woman's words or the promise of Mama's sugary butter perfection was the inspiration, Mac put down the book he was currently reading on math geniuses or some other brainy topic- a far cry from the comics Jack loved at his age- and gave a shy grin. "Thanks, Mrs. Colton."

"I haven't been a _Mrs._ in a very long time, young man." Mama pulled a can of whipped cream from her apron front and slid it over to Mac with a wink proving she had raised a small brood of her own and knew the way to a kid's heart. "You call me, Mama, like everyone else."

"What about me? Where's all the love for this handsome customer?" Jack drummed his fingers on the table. His former boss, Mama Colton, ran the best diner in Mission City, not so originally named Mama's, as well as a backwoods bar on the outskirts of town called Colton's. Jack had not only tended bar and played make-shift bouncer for the feisty proprietress but had rented an apartment over her diner for a while before he'd enlisted in the Army and had even assisted in some jobs for the bounty hunting business the woman managed to somehow keep going despite her other entrepreneurial efforts. Three years might have passed, but he still counted the older woman as one of the few people he truly trusted to have his back. "I happen to be the one picking up the check, and doling out any tips."

"You are also the one feeding your little brother _pie_ for breakfast." Mama, put a hand on her ample hip, giving Jack a disapproving scowl before reaching up and snatching the Army baseball cap from his head. She slapped it against his shoulder. "Not to mention wearing a hat inside my place of business, young man. Mama don't tolerate poor manners, even from the likes of you, Jack Dalton."

"I'll have you know this is _second_ breakfast'. We had a proper meal of eggs, bacon and Pop-tarts the first time around." Jack frowned, rubbing a hand over his hair, shooting Mac a mock glare when the kid laughed. "And forgive me if my manners are a little rusty. I haven't exactly lived in the most civilized of places for the last year while serving our great country."

"Don't go giving me that whole 'soldier boy' sob story," Mama narrowed her dark gaze at Jack. "I was married to a soldier for a lot of years, so save all that eye batting and bravado. We women of a certain age are immune to your charms."

"Now, Mama," Jack carefully reached out to take the second plate, sliding it towards him when she didn't offer to slap his hand like a kid caught in the cookie jar. "You are nowhere near 'a certain age', and even if you were, you'd be like a quart of your homemade shine, better and better as time goes by."

Ignoring Jack's attempts at flattery, Mama placed rolled silverware near Jack. He would take the offering as a white flag. "Billy told me you were back in town, on leave for a bit." Mama shifted her gaze to Mac, a rare smile lighting her face as she watched the kid generously cover his pie with whipped cream seemingly unconcerned with the adult conversation now. Her eyes found Jack's once more and he caught the hint of concern. "Billy thought you were only going to be around for a week or so, said you had orders to head back to Iraq."

"I actually managed to get an extended leave." Jack imagined Mama might have thought he'd have done something stupid like gone AWOL. Admittedly, he hadn't always made the most rational of decisions. It wasn't as if having his little brother abandoned by his one remaining parent wasn't reason enough to prompt Jack to do something entirely stupid like throw away his career and risk jail time, but he'd found a legal and legitimate way to take a few months family leave thanks to a very understanding C.O. and having a little more leeway now that he was in Delta and not regular Army. "I'm here at least until the end of Mac's summer break."

Mac looked up at that proclamation and Jack caught the flash of fear and dread in his brother's light blue eyes before the ten year old could cover his feelings. "Maybe longer," Mac offered, licking whipped cream from his fork. "Right, Jack?"

"Right, bud." Jack forced a confident smile, wishing like hell he wasn't one of the things that caused his kid brother anxiety. He hated even more that the idea of him getting an extended leave was highly doubtful. Jack had been damned lucky to pull off a couple of months to get things settled, but he wasn't overly optimistic about the prospect of further time.

"Speaking of summer vacation," Mama seemed to have picked up on the tension and Jack was grateful she made an effort to change the subject. "Why exactly are you carrying around all these books, Angus, when I know for a fact that last week was the official end of the school year?"

"My teacher, Mr. Erickson, is doing a special summer seminar on the ten most influential scientists the world has ever known," Mac said around a mouthful of pie. He swallowed before flashing Mama another slight grin. "I'm taking it with some older kids and I'm going by just Mac now, if you don't mind."

" _Just Mac_ is taking the class at the high school," Jack pointed out when Mama shot him a curious look. "For _fun._ " Jack couldn't help bragging on his kid brother a little, even if he shook his head as if he couldn't quite wrap his mind around a kid who would actually volunteer to go to school in the summer. Jack had been forced to do so a few times but he'd hated every minute of it. "I tried to talk him out of it…"

"I think it shows a good streak of ambition, _Mac_ ," Mama interrupted Jack, patting Mac's shoulder. "I like a go-getter spirit. I barely got my boys to do their work during the school year, and they were always up to no good in the summer, wasting their time goofing off with their buddies," Mama cut her eyes to Jack, who had spent a few summers getting up to no good with her youngest son, Billy. Of course that was before they discovered girls and the infamous swimming hole where the cheerleading squad liked to go after summer practices. "You'll be better off in a classroom studying your science greats I can tell you that."

"It will also keep you off of Mama Colton's bad side, bud." Jack took a bite of his pie, grinning up at the diner owner as she rolled her eyes. "That is not a place you want to be, brother, trust me."

"I'd say you would have spared me and your dear mother some heartache if you'd been a little more studious like your brother here." Mama glanced to Mac once more. "But I want to make sure you try to find some time to have fun while you're on vacation as well, sugar. Life is all about the balance."

"Jack is taking me to the library after my class." Mac said enthusiastically, as if that were the equivalent of the type of fun Mama was suggesting. "And we're going into the city tomorrow to the college's museum. They're having a special traveling exhibit on math, with a Tessellation station and a wall of fire where we can cross section different shapes with lasers."

Jack gave Mama credit for looking extremely excited on Mac's behalf. "Well now, that does sound as about as fun as a day at Disney Land."

Mac nodded in reply, because he'd stuffed the equivalent of half the pie into his mouth so Jack was quick to add. "Although, Mac's graciously agreed to come with me to at least one amusement park before the summer's over and we both want to take in some baseball games."

"That's mighty nice of you to entertain your big brother, Mac." Mama smirked at Jack. "The good Lord knows he needs someone minding him. Especially with all the free time he's going to be having. Speaking of which, Jack, if you find yourself in need of something productive to do for a little extra spending cash I have it on good authority that Colton's is in need of some extra hands at the bar, hands that might also be equipped to play bouncer if necessary."

"Business that good?" Jack stole the whipped cream from Mac's side of the table adding some to his pie. Mission city always picked up its share of tourists in the summer, outdoorsy types who came for the hiking and fishing. Colton's had a steady handful of regulars as well. "Billy said you were thinking about closing the place so you all could focus more on the bounty hunting gig."

"I considered it." Mama reclaimed the whipped cream after Jack sprayed half the can on his plate, scooting it to the far edge of the table next to her with a frown. "But then my cousin's girl finished up her fancy business management degree from NYU and asked if she could have a go of making it a more reputable, classy kind of establishment. She guarantees I'll turn a pretty profit."

"Hey, now," Jack mumbled around his pie. "Colton's are classy."

"I know, right." Mama sighed, "But Diane has lofty notions and she's not had the easiest of times lately so I told her I'd give her the summer to give it a go and so far things are going well. Come to think of it, she has a little girl about Mac's age, maybe a year younger. She's a right pretty little thing."

Jack snorted at the look of terror that crossed his brother's face when Mama turned her attention to him once more as if he knew exactly what the woman was about to suggest. "Maybe you could ask her to go to the library with you one day, Mac. She's always plopped in front of a video game or got her eyes glued to a computer screen. It might be nice for her to actually make a new friend, one she doesn't have to plug into a wall or charge."

"I have a real live friend now," Mac said, succinctly. "His name is Bozer."

"A boy can always have more than one friend, son." Mama reached out and brushed Mac's errant bangs from across his eyes. Jack hadn't missed the fact his kid brother could bring out the mothering instincts of a Great White shark. It amused him to no end, mostly because it annoyed Mac, who seemed to have the idea he was more than capable of taking care of himself and was practically grown. "This big old world would be a cold place without a good amount of family and friends."

"I have Jack." Mac pointed his fork at his brother, then looked up at Mama with what Jack knew to be his practiced innocent and wholesome stare. He was not above using his powers of persuasion when the occasion suited him. "Between him and Bozer, I really can't take on much more responsibility, mam."

Mama chuckled. "I don't know this Bozer, but I can understand your hesitancy to add one more burden, with looking after your brother and all."

"I'll have you know I'm the grown-up here, charged with all the looking after." Jack grabbed the whipped cream can, giving Mac a wink before uncapping it and taking a shot right in his mouth.

"Just go by the bar if you're so inclined." Mama grabbed the whipped cream and Jack's plate which still held a few delicious bites of her pie and sashayed off towards the kitchen with a huff. "I'll call Diane and tell her you might be stopping in," she called over her shoulder.

"What do you say about that, bud?" Jack eyed the remainder of Mac's pie.

"I say you better keep your fork on your side of the table, dude." Mac pulled his dish closer to him. He glanced up at Jack and gave a slight shrug. "As for the job, would you be working at night?"

"That's what I'm thinking." Jack wasn't hurting for money, but he also wasn't getting paid while on leave. He wanted to be able to do as many things with Mac over the summer as possible without emptying his savings which they might need depending on whether James thought to send his dad any kind of support for his son. Trips to the city and to Disney Land weren't exactly cheap and Mac would need things for the coming up school year and Harry, Mac's grandfather, while although a devoted caretaker wasn't exactly up on all the things a ten year old needed to successfully navigate the fifth grade scene. Jack's heart raced a bit with the sudden realization of the responsibility that now fell squarely on his twenty-five year old shoulders. "You'd be asleep during my shift and I'd be home in plenty of time to take you to class and hang out."

"Do I have to talk to the girl?"

Jack grinned knowing a real sticking point when he saw one. His brother tended to think in terms of black and white, not much gray in the MacGyver decision making format. "How about we just agree that you'll be polite. Mom would at least expect you to have good manners."

"Like she'd expect you not to wear a hat into a building?" Mac raised a brow as he took great care in slowly lifting his next bite of pie to his mouth.

Jack rolled his eyes. "Sometimes you're too smart for your own good, bud."

"Mr. Erickson says a guy can never be too smart." Mac glanced at his plate where one bite of the pie remained and then to Jack. He pushed the dish over to his brother. "He says I should never pretend to be average just to make other people feel more comfortable. His says me and my brain were wired to stand out from the crowd."

"Why is it the most profound thing I ever remember a teacher telling me was to keep my hands to myself and that classic sage advice to pretend my butt was glued to my chair?" Jack took the last piece of pie with his fingers since Mama had taken his fork. He grinned at his brother, who was not only the smartest kid Jack knew, but the kindest as well.

"Harry says you're not exactly a cerebral kind of guy." Mac returned his books to the bag he'd brought in with him. "Maybe you just don't remember the other things."

"Not a cerebral guy, huh?" Jack wiped a hand over his mouth, picking up his coffee to make both the pie and the insult to his intellect go down a little better. His brother was also a truth teller, not exactly one to mince his words. "I'm pretty sure my memory serves me just fine, bud." Jack would be certain to recall Harry's little insight the next time the two of them sat down to a hand of cards or chess. He would not be taking it easy on the old man.

"Did you remember we still have to get Bozer before my class starts?" Mac picked up his glass of milk, finishing it off as he looked to his brother. He used the back of his hand to wipe away the last bits of pie and milk clinging to his mouth. Despite being a super genius with a big heart, Mac was still a typical ten year old boy.

"Who could forget Bozer?" Jack couldn't, even if he tried, because since school had let out, Mac's best buddy was a constant. He sighed, wishing he could bypass the chatty kid who'd somehow scored an invite to Mr. Erickson's special seminar as well. Jack was sure Bozer was intelligent, but he had an idea that Mr. Erickson had extended the invitation to Wilt as a way of giving Mac a buddy. Bozer would no doubt fill the entire drive with non-stop conversation but Jack wasn't about to look a gift horse in the mouth, appreciating Mac's teacher's insight in giving Jack's brother a buffer with the older kids that were bound to be taking part. "But it's still early so we should have time to head over to Colton's before we swing around to get him."

"Or we could pick him up first," Mac coaxed, giving Jack a similar look to the one he'd used on Mama Colton, all big eyed and sweet. Jack fought his own urge to reach out and push back the long bangs that had once more fallen across Mac's eyes. He considered the wisdom of his former teachers and kept his hands to himself, knowing Mac wouldn't tolerate such a move on his big brother's part. Jack would make time for a trip to the barber's shop in between library visits and ballgames.

"Fine." Jack conceded, not exactly sure how Bozer's parents would feel about him taking their son to a bar, but counted on the logic that until the sun went down Colton's was technically a greasy spoon restaurant with a liquor's license that tended to get a bit rowdy around midnight. "But note that this early pick up will eat up some of my five hour max rule with your buddy, Bozer."

"I don't think class time should count," Mac pointed out gathering his bag and slipping the straps over his thin shoulders. "We should renegotiate the terms of our deal."

"You already renegotiated Saturday when Bozer stayed over at our place for the second time last week." Jack had to put a quota on Bozer's presence or spend the summer with two full time charges. He dropped a ten on the table, hoping to cover their tab and offer a generous tip to sweeten Mama's disposition. With Harry away for a few days, dinner at the diner might become a necessity when Mac tired of pizza and the Colton meatloaf was legendary. "We agreed then that the Wilt Bozer Compact was finalized, bud. No more amendments allowed."

"Bozer didn't get a vote," Mac pointed out. "That's un-American."

"That's because Bozer's not an official member of our team, nor yet a naturalized citizen in our little country." Jack sat his hat back on his head as they stepped outside into the bright morning sunshine. He glanced at Mac. "He hasn't quite earned his stripes if you get my drift."

"What does he need to do to get a badge?" Mac asked thoughtfully as if they were the Boy Scouts of America and Jack was doling out merits instead of merely making up bullshit to appease his little brother and keep Wilt Bozer out of his hair.

Jack slid on his aviator sunglasses and pulled his car keys from his pocket, feeling only slightly guilty for the subterfuge. "Well now, how about I just let you know when he's completed the necessary training and accomplished the set tasks. That's how we do it in the Army."

"That's pretty ambiguous," Mac shifted his back pack off his shoulder as they reached the GTO.

Jack snorted. "That's the military for you, brother."

Mac frowned at him. "How will Bozer know what he needs to do to be accepted into our pack if you don't tell him?"

"Maybe part of the test is him figuring it out on his own." Jack slid into the driver's seat, realizing his little brother's point wasn't far off from how Jack sometimes felt when he was expected to fulfill a seemingly impossible mission. "Look at it like one of those double blind experiments you were reading about last night. You wouldn't want to bias the results of the outcome, right?"

"I'm not even sure what we're testing Bozer for," Mac said, giving his brother a slightly perplexed look as he climbed into the passenger's side.

"Exactly." Jack impressed himself by using Mac's own logic against him. "That's the whole point. We don't want there to be any plebian effect."

"You mean placebo effect," Mac corrected, fastening his seatbelt. "Plebians are commoners."

"Who's to judge what's really common, Mac?" Jack kept a serious face as he pulled onto the street and headed down Main. Sometimes messing with the kid was too easy.

Mac eyed him thoughtfully for a full minute. Jack could practically see the wheels turning. "You'll tell me when Boze passes the test?"

"You'll be the first to know, bud." Jack grinned, confident he wouldn't have to worry about that particular chat, withstanding Bozer pulling off some amazing feat that didn't include his marathon talking skills. Jack held up a fist. "Deal?"

"Deal," Mac bumped his hand against Jack's, looking resigned if not exactly thrilled with the arrangement. "But Bozer talking to the girl counts as _me_ being polite."

"That was your plan all along." Jack cut his gaze to his passenger, shaking his head at his brother's slick strategy. "Bozer's going to be your wingman?"

"Like Goose in Top Gun?" Mac asked, confusion at what he must have considered one of Jack's typical non-sequiturs registering on his face.

Jack chuckled at his brother's literal translation. "Not exactly, Maverick. In this case wingman has a completely different meaning."

"Like what?"

"That's one of those explanations I'm saving for another day." Jack flashed Mac a quick grin, refocusing on the road. "Like when you're old enough to legally go to Colton's after dark and buy your big brother a beer."

RcJ

"Wow, this is like the Double Deuce," Bozer proclaimed climbing out of the back of Jack's GTO. He let out a low whistle as he took in the two story wooden building complete with its massive parking lot and neon signage. "Wait until I tell Dad."

"No, no." Jack hurried out of the driver's seat. He pocketed his keys, catching up with the boys as they headed towards the building. He cursed- not for the first time-Bozer's vast cinema education. What ten year old had watched Roadhouse? "This is most definitely not like the Double Deuce and there's no reason to be talking about our little visit here to anyone, especially your parents."

"What's the Double Deuce?" Mac asked.

"The bar in Roadhouse. You know, Patrick Swayze and Sam Elliott play coolers." Bozer explained emphatically as if every boy should be versed in cult 80's movies, even violent ones with inappropriate sex scenes.

"Coolers?" Mac frowned.

"Bouncers." Bozer danced around shadow boxing, tossing punches in the air before adding a dramatic karate kick with sound effects for good measure. "You know, the guys who escort the trouble makers out the door in a not so nice way when they get up to no good."

Mac shrugged, obviously not as impressed as Bozer believed he should be. "Jack might get a job as a bouncer here."

"Cool!" Bozer ended his poor imitation of Rocky to turn an awe struck gaze to Jack. "Just like Patrick Swayze's character. His last name was Dalton, too! John Dalton. You have the same initials."

"Yeah, the similarities are eerie, kid." Jack snorted, imagining himself sporting Swayze's infamous mullet. Although he could see himself playing doctor with the sweet Kelly Lynch.

"I bet you could rip a guy's throat out with your bare hands, Jack," Bozer said, thoughtfully. In Jack's opinion the kid trumped him every time when it came to non-sequiturs, his mind was as jumpy as a frog in an early spring thunder storm.

"No he can't." Mac was quick to disagree. "For one, the hand strength that would take is more aligned with what a large primate might have and even if Jack _could_ do something like that, he wouldn't do something like that because he's Jack."

"If _Jack_ can kill a man with his pinky finger and bite a rat's head off then he can tear a guy's throat out," Bozer pointed out the holes in Mac's logic. Jack's brother only had himself to blame. He'd been the one to give Bozer the impression that Jack was in the same bad ass category as Chuck Norris. Unfortunately, Jack had realized from the get go that Bozer had a bit of difficulty distinguishing between reality and all the movies he watched while his parents were busy being a lawyer and a therapist.

"There will be no ripping or tearing of body parts or biting heads off any rodents on this visit!" Jack said emphatically as he stepped in front of the boys before they made it to the door of the bar. "I'm here to talk to the manager about a completely safe, basically boring position which mostly entails me pouring drinks and piling old guys in to cabs at closing time." Jack held Mac's gaze, making sure his brother understood that this was not yet another job in which he had to worry about whether Jack might make it home in one piece. "Got it?"

Both boys nodded, but when Jack turned to head for the entrance he heard Bozer whisper that he'd show Mac the movie the next time he spent the night and that being a 'cooler' was almost as awesome as being a Delta commando. Jack tried to not to think about the nightmares that viewing would invoke for his kid brother as he remembered to pull his hat off as he ducked through the doorway, just in case Mama Colton's cousin's daughter also had a hang up about manners.

It only took a few steps into the bar for Jack to realize the level of renovations Colton's new manager had made. The bar top itself had been extended and was refinished, its dark mahogany polished to a high shine. New mirrors lined the wall behind it and glass shelving held a far more extensive stock of adult beverages than Jack remembered. Gone were the sawdust floors, replaced by more dark wood. Recessed lighting had replaced the old rows of fluorescent jobs that were always a bit too institutional for Jack's taste. He was relieved to see the pool tables were still there, along with the dart boards but they'd been updated as well. Mama's relation had even taken out the old barrels they'd used for tables and replaced them with proper high tops and matching stools, not to mention large booths with cushioned seating that lined two walls. Where the jukebox once stood there was now a decent sized stage, just perfect for the live entertainment that a lot of the locals were always hoping Mama might bring in.

"We're closed." A young girl which Jack presumed was the daughter Mama had mentioned appeared from one of the booths closest to them. She was not quite as tall as Mac, long dark hair pulled up into a messy pony tail on top of her head. Her honey gold eyes flashed at Jack as she folded her arms over a faded blue t-shirt claiming her to be a recent student at Lake Forest Elementary. "Go away."

"Hi, darlin," Jack said in his most disarming voice. "I think your mom might be expecting me."

"I'm not your darlin'," the girl gave a good imitation of Jack's Texas twang, delivering it with a hell of a lot of snark for such a small kid, which had Jack believing that despite being adorable as hell she'd more than likely _not_ ever been anyone's little darling.

"Hi. I'm Mac." Jack's little brother shocked him by actually stepping around Jack to lift a hand in greeting to the other child. He pointed at Bozer, who looked for the first time Jack had witnessed taken aback. "This is Bozer."

"What kind of name is Bozer?" The girl tilted her head, looking both boys up and down.

Mac glanced to Bozer as if he expected his best buddy to leap at the opportunity to explain for himself, but Jack, unlike Mac, had no problem recognizing a guy who had been temporarily dumbstruck and rendered speechless by a pretty girl, even if said guy was only ten and had no clue what had just happened to him.

"His first name's Wilt, like Wilt Chamberlain, but he's not really a basketball fan and likes his last name better, so we call him Bozer," Mac finally answered for his friend who had at least regained the power to close his gaping mouth and nod his head a bit.

"Who's the old guy?" Riley jutted her chin in Jack's direction. "Your dad?"

"I'm twenty-five," Jack replied, resisting the urge to cross his own arms. "I'm his brother."

"I'm Riley Davis." The girl kept her eyes on Mac, doing a good job of looking if not bored already, somewhat put out by their presence. It was a skill Jack noted that girls learned early on, but she at least was no longer demanding they leave. "What video games do you play?"

"Riley? Who are you talking to?" A woman entered through the swinging doors that blocked the main area of the bar from the kitchen. For a moment Jack could almost empathize with Bozer's earlier reaction because while the kid was cute, her mom was, as Harry would say, a tall drink of water. She may have been a few years older than Jack, thirty tops. Even dressed in sweats and a New York Jets tee, with her hair up in the same messy style as her daughter, she looked a bit too glamorous for Mission City, California. LA , maybe, but not the backwoods. Jack felt his stomach drop a bit when she turned to him and flashed a friendly, killer smile. "You must be Jack Dalton."

"I am." Jack took a step forward offering his hand. "Diane?"

"Guilty." The woman wiped her hand on the bar towel she had slung over her shoulder before offering a surprisingly firm shake. "I see you've met my daughter Riley, which leaves these two handsome young men unaccounted for."

"Gross, mom." Riley rolled her eyes. "They're like nine."

"Ten." Bozer finally found his voice. "We're ten actually, mam." He flashed Riley a smile. "Going on eleven."

"Good for you," Riley responded with yet another eye roll.

"Riley." Diane looked at Jack and shook her head. "Are your kids as difficult as this one?"

"I don't have kids." Jack said, quickly, garnering a glare of disproval from his brother. "I mean I'm not married."

"Wow." Riley muttered under her breath. "Even I know you don't have to be married to have a kid."

"Riley Grace Davis." Diane gave Jack an apologetic smile. "Sorry, she doesn't hold back her opinion on anything."

"It's alright. I don't know why I said that because being unmarried and having a kid is completely great, totally fine." Jack tried to back track, hoping he hadn't insulted the woman.

"I'm inclined to thinks so," Diane grinned, and Jack could tell from the amusement in her eyes that she had recognized his bumbling attempts at retraction for what it was-him hoping to extract his foot from his mouth. "But my mother might have disagreed. She's of the generation that likes a white wedding before the pitter patter of baby feet so I tried to do things the old fashioned way for her sake."

"Of course you're married." Jack was really off his game. He hadn't noticed the very obvious diamond solitaire and gold band he could now see when the woman held up her left hand. Jack blamed it on two years in the service and not near enough interaction with women who weren't wearing body armor and packing or wielding a needle or other medical torture devices.

"Duh," Riley breathed and Jack was really beginning to wonder if Mac was the only kid he'd ever like.

"This is my brother, Mac." Jack decided to try and reclaim some ground, setting his hands on Mac's slim shoulders and giving the kid a slight shake. "And this is his friend, Bozer. I was on my way to drop them off at school and Mama Colton suggested I might stop by, that you were in need of some help."

"Do you have time for me to ask you a few questions?" Diane gestured to the bar.

Mac looked up at Jack. "We have to be there by 10."

"Which means we can squeeze in a quick interview." Jack gave his little brother's shoulders another squeeze before letting him go. "I promise no tardy slips for the star pupil."

"Riley, why don't you and the boys go outside." Diane glanced to Jack. "We cleared out the old lot behind us, put in a split level deck and fire pit out back for outdoor seating in the summer. It's completely safe now," she explained, obviously having picked up on Jack's discomfort with the suggestion.

"Or I could show them my new games?" Riley said, hopefully. She turned to the boys. "My dad just got me Call of Duty and Command and Conquer. Have you guys played them?"

"We've played Sponge Bob Square pants," Mac replied, to which Bozer let out a barely audible groan.

"Battle for Bikini Bottom," Bozer quickly interjected. "It's pretty hard core."

"Seriously?" Riley tilted her head as if to gauge whether Bozer was joking. Jack had a feeling Riley's definition of hard core was a whole hell of a lot edgier than that of Mac's and Bozer's.

"You can blame that on me, kid." Jack told Riley, feeling kind of bad for Bozer's pitiful street cred. "I'm not big on war games. I insist they keep it PG."

"That's because Jack shoots people for real," Bozer tossed out, sounding a bit more like him old self. "Lots and lots of people."

"No he doesn't," Mac disagreed, still not getting that his friend was trying to impress the new girl.

"Only the bad guys," Bozer added as if that would make Mac feel better. He looked at Riley. "It's not like he's going to kill any of your mom's customers or anything, I mean unless she needs him to, then he'll go all John Dalton on their…."

"Okay. Outside it is, then." Diane expertly gathered the kids and shooed them towards the back exit. When Riley attempted to balk, her mom gave her a little push. "You heard Mac's brother. No violent video games. The fresh air will do you good, baby."

When Mac cast Jack a longing glance over his shoulder, Jack mouthed, 'manners' to which his brother's gaze narrowed menacingly.

"Sorry about that." Diane gestured for Jack to follow her towards the bar. "I wish Riley's dad felt the same way that you do about the video games, but it's the one thing they share an interest in and she loves playing them."

"It's no big deal." Jack took one of the seats in front of the bar as Diane made her way around to the other side. "Mac's pretty sensitive about what I do and I don't want to put any more weight on his shoulders or images in his overactive brain if you know what I mean."

"I do." Diane nodded, thoughtfully. "My Riley takes a lot on for a nine year old. Sometimes you'd think she's the mom."

"She's cute."

"So are baby Tazmanian devils but you don't want to rile one up." Diane laughed, gesturing to the glass rows of alcohol behind her. "I'd offer you a drink but it is only 9:30 in the morning. There's a coffee maker in the back but we just got in and I haven't had time to….

"It's fine," Jack held up a hand to cut her off. "I had two cups at Mama's and as you probably know her brew is so stout I'm good on caffeine for the rest of the day."

Diane snorted. "And likely tomorrow."

"Which is why if you need me to start tonight," Jack interjected. "I'm probably good to go."

"That's assuming I don't find your qualifications lacking." She raised a brow and Jack found it hard to tell if she was flirting with him or just being friendly. Since she was married, he'd go with the latter, because Mama Colton's kin aside, he didn't trespass on another guy's claim.

"Well, Mama seemed to think I did a fine job when I was here before." Jack rubbed the back of his neck, a little uncomfortable with the close scrutiny. "She wouldn't have sent me here otherwise."

"Mama mentioned you were home on leave from the Army. Did you get injured?"

"No," Jack shook his head, fumbling for a quick answer that didn't involve him going into James MacGyver bugging out on them. "Our mom died a few years back and Mac's dad is having a bit of a hard time so I came home to help out for a bit."

"That's good of you. Not a lot of guys your age are thrilled by the idea of stepping into the whole family scene." Diane pulled a notepad and pen from behind the bar and placed them in front of her. She tucked a few errant strands of hair behind her ear. "And I'm sorry about your mom, that must have been really hard for you and especially Mac."

"It was, but he's a tough kid. I promised my mom I would watch out for him, and turns out that's an easier job that I thought. Mac's the most important thing in my life," Jack said sincerely, feeling a little exposed by his burst of forthcoming when Diane gave him another considering gaze. He forced a nonchalant grin, giving a shrug. "Family is all we've really got. I mean I figure they deserve our loyalty for having to put up with us."

"I understand all about the sacrifices we make for family." Diane's smile faded and Jack's trained eye read the change in body language. Invisible guards instantly erected. She picked up her pen, all business now. "Things are a bit different around here now. I've put a lot of changes in place and plan on implementing even more before I'm through. I intend to turn the numbers around and put us far in the black as well as on the map."

"Mama mentioned that." Jack glanced around once more. The place really was shaping up. "It looks like you've got a really good start in here."

"The surface renovations are just the beginning. I want to up the quality where service is concerned and product as well." Diane's demeanor thawed a bit as she animatedly outlined some of her lofty ideas which were based on a club in lower Manhattan where Jack learned she had been the assistant manager while finishing her degree. Jack could see why Mama had been worn down by the passion-filled pitch, but wasn't quite so convinced Diane's vision was right for Mission City.

"What?" Diane asked and Jack realized his doubt must have shown on his face. "You think this is too big of an undertaking for a woman?"

"No, mam. Not at all. I imagine no job is probably too big for a woman like you. I just don't understand why you've brought your New York sized dream to Mission City is all." Jack glanced at the clock overhead, realizing he didn't exactly have time for a deep discussion and hoped he hadn't just opened a can of worms.

Diane seemed to think about her answer carefully and Jack wondered if she had a nice, polished reply that she had rehearsed and possibly repeated a dozen times over. He was surprised when she opted for something other than the spiel he had expected.

"Honestly, Mission City isn't exactly my style." She twisted the wedding ring on her finger. "But like you, my family means everything to me and I thought a change of scenery would be good for my daughter." She met Jack's gaze and gave a sad smile. "And my marriage. A fresh start and all."

"Fresh starts I get." Jack decided then and there that job or not, he wouldn't mind having Diane Davis as a friend.

"Is that what you're looking for, Jack?" Diane put down the pen, studying him like she might some new fixture she was considering to jazz up the bar. "Mama told me a bit about your past, and what you've had to sacrifice to get to where you are now. It seems to me you've moved beyond a job as a bouncer."

" _Honestly,_ " Jack used her word from earlier, "my main priority is that little boy out there." Jack gestured to the back exit. "If getting to be with him every day meant I had to take a few steps back on the career latter and slum it in your nicely renovated bar for a few years then I'd do it. It might even be a step up from some of the places I've found myself in since joining the Army, but as it is I have a commitment to my unit and I've been damn lucky to get a chance to stay here with Mac through the summer. This job would be temporary, Diane, and it would only be a means for some fun money for me and my brother to do some of the things we've missed out on the last few years. I'd do honest work for you, but don't expect me to drink the company Kool-Aid."

"What I'll expect is for you to shave and wear a clean shirt." Diane harrumphed, appearing to appreciate a straight shooter as much as Jack did if the smile she kept on her face was any indication. "I also expect you to show some decorum when it comes to the lady customers, unlike my cousin Billy who wanted to have his phone number printed on our new cocktail napkins."

"I think I can handle that." Jack smirked. "Unlike my buddy Billy, I don't need to take advantage of ladies who've had one too many Tequila shots for their own good."

"I bet you don't." Diane muttered under her breath, glancing down at her papers once more. "How about we give it a trial run tonight. Billy is out of town on some sort of job for Mama and truthfully I am more than shorthanded this evening. Fridays have been packed, and a little a crazy, so between helping out behind the bar, you can handle any trouble that might come up."

"That'll work." Jack could use the tips to splurge on his and Mac's trip to the museum tomorrow. He'd see if the Dodgers were playing. "Trouble is my middle name."

"I don't doubt that either." Diane met his gaze once more as she moved from behind the bar, glancing at her watch. "I guess we better get you on the road so your brother isn't late for class." She looked at Jack. "Summer school, is it?"

"It's an enrichment type deal," Jack explained as they made it through the restaurant and to the back exit. "He got all the brains in the family."

"That's okay." Diane pushed through the door, tossing Jack a look over her shoulder. "For this position, I'm more interested in your body, Dalton."

"The story of my life," Jack replied as they stepped onto the massive deck. The sun was brighter after being inside the dark bar and he had to blink to adjust his vision to search out Mac. Bozer and Riley were at a far table, heads bent over what looked suspiciously like a hand-held video game. Diane started their way, prompting her daughter to quickly stash the contraband and offer a sweet smile.

"Where's Mac?" Jack asked Bozer as he approached the twosome who were now flashing twin looks of complete innocence. He was more concerned about his brother's absence than he was about Bozer being exposed to excessive violence on his watch.

"He thought he saw a dog, and you know Mac." Bozer looked around as if he had suddenly realized for the first time his friend was missing. "It went that way towards the dumpsters so I'm guessing he followed."

Jack frowned, looking to where Bozer was pointing around the back of the building. He did know his brother. Mac and he shared a soft spot for animals. "What kind of dog?"

"It's probably that mangy pup that's been hanging around for a few days. Wallace, who works the grill says a lot of people drop strays in this area and I guess it was drawn in by our trash," Diane explained. "I meant to call the shelter but it keeps slipping my mind. It seemed harmless," she offered when Jack's frown deepened.

"I better…" Jack started just as the squeal of tires sounded from the side of the building followed by a loud crash. Jack didn't startle like the others, but his heart summersaulted in his chest, a surge of dread cresting right along with the wave of adrenaline that ignited his fight or flight system. He leaped over the wooden railing circling the deck, landing on the pavement a few feet below, breaking into a dead run as soon as his boots struck the ground.

"Mac!" Fear slammed into Jack with all the force of a shelling shockwave when he saw the front end of a car wedged against the two large dumpsters that sat just off the road in a grassy area beyond Colton's. It was a late model Civic, the fender folded in from where it had collided with the heavy containers. Jack barely took note of the driver who was slowly extricating himself from behind the wheel. He was too focused on making himself move, terrified of what he might find on the other side of the car, or worse beneath it.

"Jack?" Mac's voice had him whipping his head around, Jack's legs going weak as he caught site of the ten year old on his knees about ten feet away from outside the doors that led to the kitchen of Colton's. His arms were full of a black and white bundle of fur, blue eyes wide with a hint of panic.

"Shit, Mac." Jack moved quickly to his brother's side, dropping to his knees in front of the kid. There were skid marks a few yards behind his brother, a black trail where the car had veered at the last minute before slamming into the trash bins. Jack tried not to let worst case scenarios run through his head, fighting off his own momentary panic along with the gruesome images that sprung unbidden to his mind. He put a hand on the side of Mac's neck, finding the boy's pulse thundering from the scare. Jack worked hard to get his own emotions back in check. "Are you okay, bud? Are you alright?"

"I'm okay," Mac said, holding the pup tighter to his chest. His face was pale and when Jack gripped Mac's shoulders he felt slight tremors beginning to shake his thin frame. The pup, who was licking Mac's cheek like he was a piece of bacon, turned to add a few whips of it's warm tongue to Jack's hand.

"What happened, kiddo?" Jack let go of Mac's shoulder, running a hand over his little brother's hair.

"The dog was in the road, Jack," Mac stammered. "He was drinking the water I gave him. The car wasn't slowing down. It sped up." Jack glanced to the dog who was more pup than grown, noticing the paper cup filled with water by Mac's knees, which he could now see were scraped raw and freely bleeding. Jack's mind was quick to put together the pieces of what had just transpired when the driver unwisely helped fill in the gaps.

"What the hell, kid!" The man yelled as he made his way towards Mac and Jack. "Are you blind and deaf or just stupid as shit running out in the street like that." The man towered above them, his bellowing causing the pup to let out a scared yelp and to wiggle out of Mac's arms fleeing towards the wooded area once more. The ten year did his own bit of scrambling as the man continued to roar a string of obscenities. Mac buried straight into Jack's chest, seeking his own escape as the driver was stupid enough to actually reach for his arm. "I nearly ran you down! And look at my car…"

"Back off!" Jack was on his feet in a flash, pushing Mac behind him as he braced himself for a fight just as Diane and the kids made their way around the bar.

"Randy!" The woman snapped. "What did you do?"

What _Randy_ had done, Jack wanted to tell his new boss, was just sign his death warrant. If he hadn't been sheltering Mac, Jack would have already laid into the man, quite possibly doing what his little brother claimed earlier was impossible by ripping out the bastard's throat with his bare hands.

"Me?" Randy whirled on the newcomers. "I didn't do shit, Diane, but smash up our car by swerving to miss the mutt in the road."

"You better damn well be talking about that dog, you sonofa…"

"Daddy!" Riley came barreling between Jack and Randy, throwing her arms around the raving lunatic's waist. "Are you hurt? Your head is bleeding."

Jack stopped where he was, trying to reign in the white hot rage threatening to burn through every bit of his self-control. He took a deep breath, dropping a hand across Mac's shoulders as the kid stayed glued to his side.

"I'm all good, princess," Randy said through gritted teeth, dabbing at the small cut on his forehead. He was still glaring at Jack, obviously unaware of who he was dealing with. Jack caught the whiff of alcohol. It seemed Diane's husband didn't seem to have the same standards against drinking at such an early hour that his wife held unless he was still messed up from the night before, which taking in his state of disarray might have been entirely possible. The fact the man had gotten behind the wheel when obviously wasted only increased Jack's desire to pummel him. "It's my car that's in piss poor shape."

Jack wanted to tell him to fuck his car, but somehow managed to hold his tongue in light of present company. He settled for returning the other man's heated stare and replying calmly. "Your car is the least of your worries, mister."

"What were you thinking?" Diane gestured to the garbage containers and the car. "You could have killed somebody."

"This wasn't my fault," Randy turned on his wife, giving Riley a not so gentle shove away from him as he flung his arms wide to encompass the scene. He jabbed a finger towards Jack and Mac. "This guy's brat ran right out in front of me."

"He was trying to hit the dog," Mac said softly, but loud enough for Jack to hear. The ten year old pulled away from Jack, standing on his own. He even sent a decent glower to Randy. "I just wanted to get him out of the way since the car wasn't going to stop."

"It's alright, bud," Jack put a hand on Mac's shoulder, inching him back another step. While he appreciated his brother's bravery, Jack was about to teach Randy a lesson he would not soon forget and didn't want the kid to get caught up in the brawl. Jack jabbed a finger at the drunk. "You better watch who you're calling a brat."

"Take it easy, Jack." Diane held up a hand. "This was just an accident. Tensions are running high and there's no need to escalate things by…"

"Who the hell is this, Diane?" Randy gestured to Jack, a different kind of anger lighting his wild gaze now. "What's he doing here? Has he been here all night?"

"What? No. He's our new bartender," Diane said, her body going strangely rigid when Randy took an ominous step towards her. She kept her gaze locked with her husband's for a moment before averting her eyes, adding quietly. "Mama Colton sent him by this morning. He's a friend of Billy's, that's all."

"Figures," Randy sniffed straightening the collar on his jacket as if Billy Colton was the likes of something he might scrape off his shoe. "Maybe the deadbeat can work off the repairs to my car before he sees a paycheck."

"Maybe I'll break both your arms and rearrange your face and call it even." Jack breathed, clenching his fists. Randy was older than Jack, possibly an inch taller but skinner with a build like a runner. He was blond with the kind of tan a guy got from leisurely days on his fancy sailboat. Even the man's wrinkled dress shirt and pants screamed investment banker or maybe slick car salesman. Jack doubted the man would have had the nerve to approach him for fear of having his perfect white teeth knocked down his throat if not for the bravado provided by the alcohol and whatever else was pumping through his system. In short, Jack would make quick work of him, not even lathering up much of a sweat in the process of putting him down. "That way you won't be in need of a car for a good long while."

"Leave my daddy alone!" Riley growled, looking almost as angry as Jack felt as she placed herself defensively in front of the other man. Jack would have given the kid better odds of taking him than her old man. Her fierce protective streak doused some of Jack's anger and he willed himself to breathe and take a step back.

"Baby, go into the bar and get the first aid kit so we can clean up Mac's knees," Diane said casually, as if Mac had merely taken a bad spill instead of nearly being ran down by her crazy husband. It was enough to have Jack reconsidering the idea that they might become friends.

"No," Mac beat Jack to objecting. "We need to go. I have class." When Jack turned to give his brother an incredulous frown, Mac met his gaze with a softer request. "Please, Jack. I just want to go."

Jack wasn't sure if it was the rare pleading or the fact he could see the hint of tears pooling in the kid's blue eyes, hear the shaky emotion in his tone. He turned to look at Diane. "We'll skip on the first aid if it's all the same to you."

"I understand." Diane nodded. "I'm sorry."

"So am I." Jack glanced at Randy then back to his wife. "I'll come help out with the bar tonight for Mama Colton because that's what I agreed to, but I'd keep that Help Wanted sign in the window if I were you, Diane. I won't be taking the position."

"What about my car?" Randy had the nerve to speak again.

"Randy." Diane growled. "For God's sake. Leave it be."

"You better listen to your wife, Davis." Jack made to take a step towards the idiot when Mac gripped his shirt. "Go sleep off whatever liquid courage is coursing through your skinny ass before your mouth writes a check your body sure as hell can't cash."

"Come on, Daddy." Riley took hold of her father's hand and pulled him towards the deck. Not only was the kid gutsier than her old man, she was a whole hell of a lot smarter. "Ignore him. I'll make you some coffee just the way you like it and get you a Band-aide."

Randy wisely let his daughter lead him away, swaying on his feet as he moved towards the deck. Jack heard him mutter something about finishing off the damn mutt, and Jack nearly rethought his decision not to kick the guy's ass.

"He's not always like that," Diane's soft words, reclaimed Jack's attention. The woman looked like she was about to touch his arm, but thought better of it, crossing her arms instead and taking a step back. "Randy lost his job a few months ago. Realty has taken a hit. He's had a hard time of it."

"I'll see you tonight, Diane. Make sure your husband isn't here." Jack stared at the woman for a long moment before giving a sad shake of his head. He could easily detect the fear in her gaze, marring the brightness that had shone there before. Jack could never understand men who raised a hand to a woman, having been reared with an ingrained belief that a real man honored and protected, but he also had a hard time figuring out the women who stayed with the kind of men who didn't cotton to the same beliefs.

"You won't tell Mama Colton, right?" The desperation in Diane's voice was clear. "I mean, Mac's okay."

Jack needed to get out of there before he said something he'd regret. He gripped Mac's shoulder and nodded for Bozer to follow.

"Right, Jack?" Diane called again.

Jack kept going until he and the boys made it to the front parking lot where fury and adrenaline had him practically strumming with barely controlled energy. He fumbled the keys pulling them from his pocket, cursed under his breath when he dropped them.

Bozer quickly picked them up from the ground offering them to Jack. He tried for a half grin. "So much for safe and boring, Captain Dalton. I told you this place was like The Double Deuce."

Jack took the keys and jerked a thumb at his GTO. "Get in the damn car, Boze." He waited until the kid glumly complied before turning and kneeling in front of his brother who had gone eerily quiet. Jack resisted the urge to crush the kid to his chest and hold on for dear life for fear of mortifying the ten year old in front of his best buddy, Bozer. "Mac. Look at me, brother." He tilted the boy's chin up so that he could see his face. "You really okay?"

Mac blinked, freeing a tear to track down his cheek. Jack could see the anger brewing in the blue depths, bubbling through any last vestiges of fear. Mac's fists were balled. "Why would he do that, Jack? Why would someone want to hurt an innocent dog?"

"I don't know, kid," Jack said with a sigh. Why did people fly air planes into buildings and strap bombs onto women and children? Why did moms get cancer and dads ditch their kids to run off and do God only knows. He didn't have any damn answers so he did the only thing he could do. He reached up and ran a hand over Mac's hair, surprised when the move didn't garner him a glower of disapproval. Jack let his fingers wrap around the back of Mac's neck, giving a gentle squeeze as he brought his brother closer. "Right now, I'm more worried about the fact you put yourself in danger. You nearly gave me a heart attack with that hero stuff."

"I couldn't let him get hit." Mac's brow furrowed in familiar stubborn lines. "If you're in a position to help someone in trouble, to save a life, then it's your duty to do so."

Jack rubbed a hand down his face, hating having his words tossed back at him. He'd used that spiel in an argument with his grandmother Beth when he'd told her he was going to the Army after 9-11. Jack knew a change in tactic was called for. "How are the knees, bud? They look painful. Maybe you should skip class today."

"No." Mac shook his head, proving he was every bit as obstinate as his older brother. "I have a test today. It's the first one. We can clean up my knees in the bathroom at school."

"Fine." Jack sighed, letting his brother go so he could stand up. His knees popped and he felt about ten years older than he had when he'd gotten up that morning. So much for a relaxing summer. If Mac could compartmentalize and he was the one almost mowed down by a drunk driver, then Jack could lock down his own fear and worry long enough to let the kid go to his damn class. "I did stay up way past my bedtime helping you study. It would be a shame to waste all my hard prep work."

"You ate pizza and watched Die Hard while sticking my flashcards to my head like the answers would transfer to my brain through osmosis," Mac pointed out.

"That's not studying?" Jack feigned confusion, moving to open the passenger door for his brother. "But that's how I did it in college."

"Which explains a lot about your grades while you were there." Mac hesitated before climbing in. He glanced towards Colton's once more, then looked up at Jack. "I don't want you to come back here ?"

Jack propped his hands on the hood of the car, meeting the kid's fearful gaze. "Now what were you just saying about a guy being in a position to help a person out and not doing it?"

"I don't think the bar lady needs your help that bad, Jack."

"I was talking about the dog, kiddo." Jack winked at his brother. "How am I supposed to rescue your new furry pal if I don't come back here tonight?"

RcJ

To be continued on Friday...

And yes...you just got a glimpse of the infamous Archimedes.


	2. Chapter 2

For Family

By: Ridley

A/N: One week, y'all! Can't wait for Season 2! Thank you for the very generous reviews on this little AU. I'm so glad someone else besides myself is amused by it. One more chapter to go, and hopefully by Monday! Let me know what you think!

RcJ

Jack felt exhaustion and a wave of emptiness as he opened the door to their house. It was a sadness he wished he could shake because he was more than grateful to be home instead of eight thousand miles away. He knew his mother's absence was to blame for the sense of melancholy as much as the unexpected events of the day. Even after almost five years he expected her to be here. Jack might have missed his father deeply, but it was a distant pain, blurry around the edges like his memories of the man. The way he longed for his mom was different, a sharp and all too fresh ache that would often catch him by surprise anytime his guard was down.

The familiar smells and sensations of home only increased the yearning to see her, hear her voice. Even at his age, Jack wished for her to be on the other side of the door, waiting to greet him with a hug, the smile that always made him feel like the most important person in the world. He supposed her absence was only exacerbated today by the thoughts of nearly losing Mac. Mac, who at times, was like a walking talking embodiment of their mother's memory. He was also the only other person in the world that understood and experienced her loss in the way Jack did.

Jack watched his brother sidle past him, making his way into the living room. He couldn't imagine losing the kid, nor could he remember being so terrified as he was when he thought Mac had been mowed down by that car on his watch. Considering Jack had spent the last two years in a war zone being targeted by men who hated him for no other reason than he was an American that was saying a lot. He wondered if Mac felt the renewed heaviness in the house too as the ten year old got as far as the couch, dumping his bag on the floor instead of taking it to his room.

"You want to order pizza?" Jack asked his brother, who was now staring towards the kitchen as if he, like Jack, was expecting someone to come out at any moment. They had the place to themselves. Harry had taken advantage of Jack being home, using the opportunity to get away to his cabin for a few days of solo fishing. Jack imagined the guy hadn't really had time to process what James had done the month before, and could use the alone time to put it all into perspective.

"I'm not hungry." Mac plopped onto the sofa with a sigh.

Jack closed the door, tossing his keys into the basket on the nearby table before joining his brother. "That doesn't sound right. You're always hungry, bud."

Mac shrugged, not saying anything and Jack recognized the beginnings of what he'd begun calling Def-con Walls Up. It was a new thing the ten year old had started doing since his father had bailed. Mac would merely seem to shut down, block everything and everyone out, almost like cutting the power to a computer. Jack was reminded of an old television sitcom he and his mom used to watch when he was a kid about a robotics engineer who created a robot modeled after a little girl which he passed off as his adopted daughter. Jack always thought 'Vicky' was creepy as hell and he didn't like Mac going all android on him.

"Hey." Jack took a seat on the coffee table across from his brother, giving Mac's leg a little shake. "Talk to me, bud. What's going on in that ginormous brain of yours? Did the test not go well?"

"It was fine." Mac blinked, his gaze meeting Jack's with a little more awareness. "I knew all the questions and the bonus."

Jack forced a smile he didn't' really feel. "Told you my study techniques were stellar."

Mac didn't take the bait, his face remaining glum. "I'm sorry I scared you today. I didn't mean to get hurt."

"You were just trying to help, kiddo. That's who you are." The whole incident had taken years off Jack's life and probably jump started a bit of premature graying but he was really trying to focus on the fact his little brother was still with him and basically unscathed sans the scraped knees. "And this wasn't as bad as the time you disappeared during James's brilliant skunking adventure."

"Spelunking," Mac's mouth twitched with a hint of a smile at Jack's purposive misuse of words. "At least this time wasn't entirely my fault."

"I'm not blaming you, brother." Jack hadn't blamed Mac for being lost in the Cave of the Winds either, even if the little boy had confessed to wondering off. James had received the full force of Jack's wrath then, rightfully so, just as Randy Davis was the only one Jack held responsible for Mac's being hurt this time around. "Davis made a really bad choice when he got behind the wheel of a car in his condition. This was not your fault."

"I feel bad for Riley," Mac said, picking at the edge of one of the bandages on his right knee. Mr. Erickson had rounded them up a first aid kit from the school nurse's office, allowing Jack to properly clean and dress the cuts before class had started. Mac drew the line at letting Jack sit in on the class, even though Jack was hesitant to let him out of his sight after the scare they'd just had. He lifted his blue gaze to Jack's. "Her dad is mean."

"One bad decision doesn't make a guy a bad dad." Jack might have tended to agree with his brother's evaluation of Randy Davis, although he thought _mean_ was being extremely generous on Mac's part, but he had a feeling Mac was processing things on a deeper level and worked hard to tread carefully. "Riley's dad did a really stupid thing, but that doesn't mean he doesn't love her or that she shouldn't still care about him. He's still her father. Jerk or not."

"I really miss my dad." Mac met Jack's gaze and for the second time that day Jack's chest ached for the disillusionment he saw in his brother's blue eyes. It made him want to track James MacGyver down and pull some Patrick Swayze Roadhouse moves on him. But as much as Jack wanted to give into his own wrath he was more concerned that the recent scare had shaken loose some of Mac's tightly packed away feelings about his father's recent departure. Jack and Harry had worked the last few weeks trying to put the kid back together and Jack sure as hell wouldn't let his own selfish desires to rain hell down on James cause his brother more pain or set back in progress he'd made in the healing process.

"Of course you do. There's nothing wrong with that," Jack assured, moving to take a seat on the couch by his brother.

"I want him to come home, to come back to be with me, almost as much as I don't want you to leave me again." Mac had pulled his knees up to his chest, resting his chin on them.

"I get that, kiddo." Jack tossed his arm over the kid's shoulders, hating like hell that he was causing his brother any kind of pain. "I wish I could fix both those things for you but neither are in my control at the moment. What I can do is order us a killer pizza from Merle's and look at your battle plan for tackling that museum tomorrow. The rest we will take one day at a time. Together. I promise."

"I know one thing in your control." Mac looked up at him. "You could not go to work at the bar tonight. We could go and look for Archimedes in the morning."

"Archimedes?" Jack raised a brow, ignoring the first part of Mac's proposal.

"I mean we can name the puppy something else, but Archimedes is one of my favorite scientists. Mr. Erickson says he was a mathematician, physicist, engineer, inventor and astronomer. All the things I want to be when I grow up."

"Was he a cowboy, too?" Jack asked, fighting to keep a grin from his face. "Because the last time I checked your career list that job was on there, right along with fireman, NBA basketball star, and super spy."

"I'm going to do those things, too. A guy has to have hobbies." Mac was completely serious. "Like Mama Colton said, life is all about balance."

"As long as you're not a soldier." Jack laughed, pulling his brother in for a side hug that the ten year old endured for a recent record of like ten seconds before squirming away.

"But you're a soldier," Mac pointed out very matter of factly. "So was your dad, and Harry, too. Soldiers are heroes."

Jack wasn't about to argue the ridiculous possibility of Mac entering the service, not when his brother had far greater things to offer the world than laying down his life on some battlefield. Even he recognized it would quickly turn into one of those hypocrite moments of 'do as I say, not as I do', so he wisely returned the conversation to the dog. "You might be all fanboy over your geeky science guy Archimedes, but I'm not sure you should tag the pup with a name just yet. For starters, he may be long gone by now and let's not forget about Harry. I'm not sure your grandfather will be happy to come home and find yet another stray under foot. He barely tolerates me and I don't have fleas."

"Harry loves you, Jack." Mac frowned. "Just like Nana Beth and JP love me. Family isn't always about how much blood you share. If I had a _whole_ brother, I still wouldn't love them as much as I do you, even if we are only halves. Math and biology don't apply to us."

Jack swallowed the lump that sprung to his throat. For Mac, who counted on the predictability of math and loved the accuracy and certainty of science, such a denouncement was a huge honor. The kid's capacity for love still caught him off guards sometimes. He cleared his throat. "You're right about that, bud. Family doesn't always have a lot to do with genes. Still, don't get your hopes up about the dog. I'll go to bat for you with Harry, but I can't make any promises whether or not he'll see things like you do." Jack wasn't about to set his brother up for more disappointment, although the idea of leaving his brother with a great watch dog when he left at the end of the summer was a nice idea.

"So, you'll stay home tonight?"

"Nice try, kiddo." Jack grinned at the wide-eyed, hopeful look Mac was giving him. One Jack would be sure to coach him to replicate when they hit Harry with the pet request. He ruffled Mac's hair to soften the blow. "I'm going to work like I said I would and you're going to spend the night with your buddy, Boze. I already cleared it with his mom."

"But we need to be on the road early tomorrow," Mac tried, attempting to smooth his wild hair back into place. "The museum opens at 10."

"Which is why I'll swing by to get you around eight. We'll even have time to stop by Mama Colton's for some of her buttermilk pancakes."

Mac gave him a thoughtful glance. "Are they as good as her buttermilk pie?"

"I'll let you be the judge of that." Jack reached up and gave the kid's too long hair another good ruffle, messing up the strands Mac had just put back in place. "You want extra anchovies on that pizza, right?"

"I don't even want them on your half!" Mac growled, knocking his hand away before punching Jack hard in the shoulder. "They might contaminate my pineapple."

"How many times do I have to tell you fruit doesn't have a place on pizza, son." Jack rubbed his arm, letting their typical banter chase away the last of his dark mood. If he'd learned anything from losing his parents, it was that a guy should hold tight to whatever happiness he could grab onto.

"And fish does?" Mac rolled his eyes, making a gagging sound. "How about we compromise and just stick to pepperoni and cheese."

"Now you sound like mom." Jack huffed, secretly pleased that his brother had proposed exactly what their mother always did when family night turned into a battle of pizza toppings. James and Mac always insisted on their beloved Hawaiian concoction while Jack and Emma, who shared a love for all things meat, refused any plant based additions. Why they just didn't get two pies Jack had never understood, but it became somewhat of a tradition to argue for ten minutes before ordering what they always did-pepperoni and cheese. "I was going to suggest we arm wrestle for the right to choose, or do rock, paper, scissors but if you want to be a girl about it…"

"You never win at rock, paper, scissors, Jack." Mac got off the couch and picked up his bag. "You always choose rock."

"That's because rock is obviously the manliest choice of the three." Jack gave his little brother a push towards his bedroom, relieved that one emotional crisis had been averted, or at least appeased until a later day like a time when Jack wasn't still revved up from nearly losing the kid.

"But not the smartest decision if I know you're going to pick it every single time." Mac shot Jack a smirk.

"Yeah, well, I never claimed to be the brains in the family," Jack called after the kid, smiling to himself as he remembered what Diane had said about his better attributes.

"Archimedes might bump you up a notch in the ranking," Mac suggested from the doorway to his room. "All the more reason for us to keep him."

"Might?" Jack feigned incredulity.

"Dogs are really intelligent." Mac shrugged. "I'll have to wait and see how well he takes to command and if he chases his own tail or not."

"Funny!" Jack grabbed a pillow from the couch, lobbing it at his little brother's head. Mac dodged the throw, ducking into his room with a burst of laughter that filled the house, temporarily driving out any lingering sadness. "Just for that," Jack called, "the anchovies are back on the table, brother!"

RcJ

Jack's amusement at being wanted by Diane for his body lasted right up until the old lady with the walker grabbed his ass when'd he'd been kind enough to bring her Shirley Temple to the table while the servers working the bar area were slammed. It seemed Diane's upscale renovations had brought an influx of bored and obviously horny housewives in from as far away as Lancaster. Some of them saw the need to bring their mothers along for a night out. Jack had been patted, pinched, and even outright propositoned by one patron who'd promised to double his salary and tips from the evening if he'd only escort her home and be her private bartender. Jack was pretty certain she wasn't all that interested in his Dirty Martini making skills.

It wasn't as if he wasn't used to attention from the opposite sex. Jack had always been athletic, a little on the skinny side, but had bulked up in the military, adding pounds of muscle to his 6'3 frame. He figured being admired for one's looks wasn't such a bad thing, even if his ex, Sarah, had complained on occassion that it was ridiculous how women behaved around him. Jack could think of a lot worse afflictions, but had long since grown tired of being accosted by the overly friendly patrons of Coltons and really wished he'd listened to his little brother and skipped the white knight routine completely, Mama Colton's cousin be damned.

Diane, although seemingly appreciative of his help, especially in light of the fact Colton's was indeed slammed, mostly kept her distance. She divided her time by flitting around the tables in the band area and talking with the diners that had chosen the outside deck in light of the perfect weather conditions. The bar was wall to wall, more packed than Jack had seen it and Diane's marketing had definitely brought in a new clientele to mix with the regulars. Jack had fallen back into old routine easily enough, surprised when he remembered almost all the recipes for the house specials along with his own signature concoction, the Texas Tornado margarita, guaranteed to sweep a gal off her feet. Obviously, it might have worked too well. He'd only had to break up two fights near the end of his shift, neither of which had gotten out of hand before he stepped in. Bozer would have been sorely disappointed. Colton's was a far cry from The Double Deuce.

The dickhead Davis showed up early on despite Jack's warning, but him and the two buddies he'd brought along kept their distance. Jack recognized one of them as a guy who'd graduated high school a couple of years before him. Even back in the day, Lou Ferrier was known as the dude to see to score your drug of choice. The last time Jack was in town Billy had said there were rumors Lou floated serious shit now, like coke and heroine for bigger runners out of LA.

Jack wasn't surprised to see Randy had apparently made all the wrong kind of friends in his short stint in Mission City. He hated it for Diane, but mostly for Riley, because the poor kid didn't get a choice in parents, but Jack would be glad to wash his hands of the entire mess. He'd be sure and tell Mama that he'd decided to decline the job due to not wanting to waste any of his time with Mac and maybe he'd also put a bug in Billy's ear that he might want to spend less time in the bounty hunting gig, and more at the bar, at least through the summer, especially if Randy and associates were going to be around.

"You still want these burgers and chicken strips from the warmer, dude?" Wallace, fry cook extraordinaire entered the bar area through the swinging doors from the kitchen while Jack was doing the final wipe downs and restock. Diane had already pulled the tills and paid Jack. She'd said her goodnight around three, not long after last call, wished him well, and told him the kitchen crew would lock up and set the alarm when they were finished with their closing routine.

"If you're not taking them, Wally," Jack grinned. Wallace and a couple of the veteran servers, Mitzi and Rowena, were the only staff remaining from Jack's old days at Colton's. "I know you've got a crew at home to feed."

"I live with five women, Dalton." Wally pulled at the fancy black smock he was wearing, which was a far cry from the stained white shirt and suspenders he used to don while flipping burgers and dropping fries. He was also wearing a hair net over his head instead of his trademark Dodgers ball cap, the long braid he'd bound his black hair in trailing down his back from beneath it. "Three of which are teenagers who think carbohydrate is a dirty word. My youngest is now a vegan and believes I'm a ritualistic animal murderer out to do my part to destroy the freaking environment. My wife is trying to drop ten pounds for her twentieth high school reunion and has made it her mission to watch my cholesterol and tri-glycerides like a beady-eyed hawk, so trust me when I say, I will not be taking any leftovers home. As brilliant as my cooking is, it's just not worth the hell I will catch."

"Never mind the fact you already sampled something off every plate you sent out?" Jack made a point to eye the man's rotund girth. "Not that you could tell with that girlish figure."

"Ha!" Wally rubbed his protruding gut. "A culinary artist like myself wouldn't dream of letting something unpalatable leave my kitchen. Never trust a skinny chef, kid."

"Right." Jack snorted, tossing the bar towel he'd been using under the register. "I'm sure Diane is shooting for a Michelin Star or two before her time here is through."

"Boss lady has big ideas." Wallace ran a finger over his salt and pepper goatee. "I'm sure if you stuck around she'd be willing to up your pay. Billy is a good bartender but he's a better poker player than you and I miss taking your money."

"The pay's not the issue, man, or that I'm afraid to go head to head with you in a game of cards." Jack followed the cook back into the kitchen area where he'd left his jacket and keys in Wally's locker. "Her husband and I didn't exactly get off on the best footing. The guy's a dick."

Wallace nodded his agreement. "From what I've seen, he's a real tool."

"He's definitely on my shit list and the last thing I need is to find trouble while I'm on leave. I'm just here to take care of Mac."

"Harry mentioned James had gone on an extended trip at our last Lodge meeting."

"Lodge meeting?" Jack snorted, thinking of Harry's weekly meetup with his some of his old war buddies and a few of what Harry referred to as young pups. Wallace was in the young pup category, closer to James MacGyver's age than Harry's, so Jack wasn't about to air their family's dirty laundry. "Don't you mean at your last poker tournament?"

"The Lodge is a sacred place." Wallace turned from gathering up the leftovers and flashed Jack a grin as he handed him the food. "My brothers and I, we're like the Masons. We don't talk about our goings on."

"The only Masons anybody will ever find in your all's backwoods hole up are the Mason jars Mama Colton uses to store her 90 proof." Jack took the paper bag, figuring if hamburger and chicken didn't bring Archimedes out of hiding, nothing would. He nodded at the cook. "Thanks for this."

"If you're planning on feeding that to your kid brother at least have him wash it down with some milk and maybe put a few vegetables on the side."

"No offense, Wallace, but I'd probably let Mac sample some of the whiskey selections out at the bar before I'd let him eat your aged culinary delights." Jack gestured to the grease stains already soaking through the sack. "I'm hoping the stray pup we saw earlier today will find it more appealing."

"Good luck with that, my friend. I had him eating out of my hand before the boss's old man tossed some fire crackers out at him one night." Wallace gave a knowing shake of his head when Jack's eyes narrowed. "Like I said, man, dude's a real tool."

"All the more reason for me and the dog to get the hell away from this place and not look back."

"More power to you, kid." Wallace gestured to the back door. "Do I need to leave that unlocked for you or have you got all you need?"

"Just let me grab my jacket and I'll get out of your way. I won't need back in. If the dog doesn't show tonight, I'll swing by in the morning before anyone shows up."

"Nobody should be in until around four. We don't open on Saturdays until eight in the evening, so I start prep later." Wally unlocked his locker, removing Jack's things. "If you want some pick up work over the summer, my brother still has the garage in town. He can always use a good mechanic."

"I've been honing my skills on airplanes and choppers these days, but I can still find my way around a car engine." Jake nodded, taking his stuff from Wally. He set his baseball cap on his head, making sure Harry's jeep keys were in his coat pocket. He was glad Harry had taken his old truck, leaving Jack the jeep because Jack had not wanted to bring the GTO, not trusting leaving it in the parking lot of a bar, no matter how upscale Colton's had become. "Tell Scooter I might be up for finishing some jobs for him late in the evenings when Harry's home with Mac. I'll swing by his place sometime next week." It would beat the hell out of working at Colton's.

"Will do, brother," Wally gave a half salute. "If I don't see you again before your leave's up, keep your head down."

"I always do." Jack returned the salute, stepping out the back door into the night air. He could understand the crowd they'd had for the patio. The sky was star-filled and the beauty of it and the warm breeze with all the smells of summer it brought filled Jack with a desire for camping. He made a mental note to make plans for him and Mac to do a weekend trip in the next few weeks. They could pack Mac's telescope and the kid could impress Jack with his knowledge of all the constellations. Harry was the astronomer in the family, but made sure his grandson was as competent as a sailorwhen it came to reading the maps of the heavens.

Jack kept his thoughts on long days fishing at the lake and nights roasting hotdogs and marshmallows around the camp fire instead of the earlier events of the morning as he crossed the road between Colton's and the dumpsters beyond. The echo of tires screeching and the sound of the subsequent crash tried to get a foothold in Jack's mind, but he blocked them out, instead focusing on the song of the crickets and frogs he could hear from the pond that he knew was just on the other side of the treeline because he'd once used all his wiles to talk Sarah into skinny dipping there after a late shift.

Colton's security lights cast a faint glow all the way to the garbage containers and recycling bend, but Jack took a path just beyond into the shadows, stopping at the top of a small rise. He peered into the dark woods beyond where he caught a few glimpses of fireflies flashing here and there. Dropping to one knee, he tore the bag of food down the seam so he could spread part of it out on the ground like a platter. The meat was still warm and Jack easily picked up the scent of grease and charred beef. He figured a hungry dog with a nose a hundred times better than his would have no problem catching a whiff of the meal, especially with the breeze at Jack's back.

He'd wooed dogs in Iraq and Afghanistan, feeding them leftover rations. It was against regulation, but he'd let a few of the strays into their camp, and turned a blind eye when one he'd named Levi even slept on his bunk. It was one of the reasons he couldn't be too hard on Mac for wanting to rescue the pup, even if the kid's attempt had taken a few years off Jack's life.

To hear his Nana tell it, Jack had always had an innate need to save any wounded or neglected thing. She loved to bring up the time he'd rescued a hurt baby raccoon, hiding it away in his room for half the summer before she'd caught the little thief red-handed on her kitchen counter taking cookies straight from the cookie jar. If it hadn't been the summer after Jack's father had died, Jack was pretty sure keeping a wild animal in the house would have gotten him a tanned hide. As it was, Beth offered him a huge helping of grace instead of laying a hand on his behind. She did, however banish Bandit, the fully healed, raccoon back to the woods where he belonged.

Jack had no more backed away from the feast and moved to sit a few feet away from the dumpster when he heard a rustle in thick underbrush. He stayed still, watching the tall grasses and reeds that flowed down the small incline to bump against the forest beyond. It took a while longer, a time in which his sniper instincts told him he was being carefully watched even if he couldn't see his observer. Hunger must have worn out over any trepidations because Archimedes, as Mac had tagged the scrawny pup, popped up over the ridge. The dog eyed Jack and then the food, tilting its head in a way that spoke to intense consideration.

Even though Jack's eyes had adjusted to the darkness, he couldn't see the dog well from the distance it still maintained. Jack looked away, feigning distraction. It was all the encouragement the dog needed as it moved forward to snatch a burger and then dashed back into the cover of the grass where it seemed to vanish. Jack knew he was still there. The pup repeated the move several times, while Jack stayed where he was. His patience paid off when Archimedes, after finishing the pieces Jack had left, came searching for the rest which Jack had placed close to his leg.

Jack had no doubts the dog was young and had lived around people- one of whom who had obviously been heartless enough to abandon him- when it came close after such a short time, seeking a connection that a feral animal would have shied away from, food or not. Archimedes sat on his haunches just a few feet away now, staring at the last hamburger patty and chicken strip next to Jack. Twin shoe string laces of drool dangled from either side of his mouth as he sneaked glances at the stranger who'd delivered the meal.

"It's yours for the taking, buddy, but you're going to have to come to me this time." The dog tilted its head to one side then the other causing Jack to give a soft chuckle. Some more soft talk and patience had the pup in the Delta operator's reach and Jack grinned when he could make out the pale blue eyes regarding him now with more intelligent curiosity than fear. A silver white tail thumped the ground with each word Jack spoke.

Archimedes appeared to be part husky, which would explain the eye color, with maybe some Border collie or Australian Shepherd tossed in the mix if the black and white speckled feet were any indication. One ear was black, the other white, both perked on high alert as the animal finally came close enough for contact.

"You sure are a handsome guy, even with all the dirt." Jack moved carefully opening his palm for the pup to sniff. He then picked up a piece of the chicken and offered it to the dog that surprisingly didn't snatch but carefully accepted the offering before nearly swallowing it whole. Archimedes allowed Jack to rub his ears as he finished off the burger as well, tail thumping furiously now as Jack scratched his head.

The dog had lost most of its inhibition now, both paws planted on Jack's outstretched leg, so it surprised Jack when the pup's ears unexpectedly perked then laid back, pinned to his head in a sign of fear or aggression. The matted hair at the scruff of Archimedes' neck ruffled and a low growl rumbled deep in his throat.

"What's wrong, boy?"

The only response the Delta operator received was another fierce growl from Archimedes before a white hot pain exploded at the base of Jack's skull. His initial thought was that he'd been shot, struck by enemy fire. It was damn ironic considering the conversation he and Wallace had about Jack keeping his head down on the battlefield and then there was the fact he was in Mission City, California not some war torn providence in Iraq. Despite the unlikelihood, in that moment of intense agony, Jack was certain a bullet had pierced his brain, and he'd soon be leaking gray matter, assuring Archimedes would indeed one up him in the intelligence department. Jack's last conscious thought was of Mac. Who would take him to the museum? A darker consideration chased him into the black void. Jack had gone and done the last thing he had ever wanted to do-abandoning his little brother by going and getting his fool self killed.

To be continued…


	3. Chapter 3

For Family

By: Ridley C. James

A/N: First, so sorry this did not get posted earlier. I should know better than to put myself on a timeline. I am so grateful for all the reviews and encouragement for this universe. As long as you guys want to explore it, I'll keep writing. I do have a missing scene for Episode one of season 2 coming up tomorrow! It is in my lovely beta's hands so it is completely finished. I hope that somewhat makes up for this being a bit late. For any readers who may be from the states, including Puerto Rico, that have endured the recent tragedies my prayers are with you.

RcJ

Mac looked out from Bozer's front window for what was sure to be the tenth time in the last thirty minutes. It was after 9 in the morning and Jack was an hour late. Mac's mind raced with numerous scenarios that could have caused his brother to break the promise he made to pick Mac up at eight.

They went from the plausible, like Jack merely oversleeping after working into the early hours of the morning, to the illogical, that involved ninjas and a government plot to force his brother to rescue the President of the United States, who'd been taken from The White House by said ninjas. Bozer might have influenced the latter one because it sounded a lot like the story line to the current screenplay he was writing which he insisted on reading to Mac the night before after they had watched Roadhouse, even though Jack had strongly discouraged the viewing.

Mac could feel his best friend's eyes on him as he continued to survey the circle drive out front as if by his intense focus alone he could will Jack to appear. Mac tried not to think of how many times he'd stared out the front window of his own home, hoping his father might miraculously show up. He fought off the fear that like his dad, Jack might have simply vanished.

"We could call him again."

Mac turned at Bozer's suggestion, giving a slight shake of his head. "I just did a few minutes ago."

"Maybe he overslept." Bozer moved to the couch, taking a seat next to Mac when the blond let go of the curtains and slid onto one of the cushions. "The bar didn't close until 2:30 this morning. I read the hours on the door when we were there."

"Jack's always up early." Mac bit his lip, considering the other possibilities. "He doesn't sleep that good because he has bad dreams about all the war stuff."

"Then he could have gone by to get you all breakfast for the road." Bozer was trying to help, but adding his own postulations to Mac's was only adding to the other ten year old's building anxiety. Mac could feel his heart pounding and his chest felt tight, making it harder to breathe. He fidgeted with the cuff of the flannel shirt he'd put on over his Dodgers tee trying to focus his nervous energy.

"Something's wrong." The words seemed to escape of their own volition and Mac longed to take them back now that he'd spoken his concern out loud. Just as Mac couldn't change what he'd said, he also wasn't able to stop his runaway train of thought. "Jack wouldn't break a promise unless something happened to him."

"A flat tire?" Bozer offered, ever the optimistic. It was no coincidence that all his screenplays- despite the body count or gory content- always ended happily.

"He would have called me." Mac moved to the edge of the sofa, looking down at his watch, the one Jack had given him that told military time in all the different time zones. "He's never been late for anything- except once."

"When was that?"

"The day he forgot to pick me up from kindergarten." Mac looked at the other boy, giving a slight shrug of his shoulder as if it hadn't been that big of a deal. Only it had. Mac could recall the October day in vivid detail although it had been over five years before. In fact, if he tried he could still see the panic in Jack's eyes when he'd dashed onto the playground where Mac's teacher, Mrs. Harley, had waited with him after reaching Jack by phone. Mac also remembered the way Jack had hugged him hard to his chest and said he was sorry over and over again. Mac could especially recall the smell of Jack's shirt from when he'd buried his head against his brother's shoulder trying not to cry. It was unfamiliar, foreign and harsh, a scent Mac would soon recognize and come to associate in the weeks and months to follow as one belonging to the ICU of a hospital. He'd forever label it in his olfactory spectrum as the smell of death.

"What caused him to forget you?"

"My mom collapsed in her classroom at the high school and had to be taken away in an ambulance," Mac said resolutely. He glanced away from Bozer, realizing his friend now understood Mac's hesitancy about being in the science lab of the school the day before despite the prospect of all the cool equipment. "The hospital called Jack because my dad was out of town on business."

"Oh." Bozer seemed unsure of what to say next, which was an unusual occurrence for him to say the least. He and Mac had rarely talked about Mac's mom. Not too long after they'd become friends, Bozer had asked why Mac lived with his dad and grandfather. Mac had explained about the cancer, the way his mom had gotten sicker and sicker and how she'd become too tired to fight anymore. It was not a happy story and Mac learned quickly that people didn't like to talk about anyone's dead mother. If they did, it was usually to say something stupid. Like she was in a better place. Or she was somewhere watching over Mac leaving Mac to always wonder what place could ever be better than the one where they were still all together, him, his dad and mom, and Jack, as a family and where Mac's mom not only watched over him, but made him peanut butter sandwiches, took him to school, read to him and tucked him in every single night. Mac decided early on never to mention his mother to anyone unless they asked, which they rarely did.

"It's probably nothing like that this time, Mac," Bozer assured, putting a hand on Mac's shoulder.

Mac stood suddenly, unwilling to sit around and find out. After all, he wasn't a five year old baby anymore. He was practically a grown up. "I'm going to find him."

"How?" Bozer followed Mac off the couch. Mac caught the worried look he flashed him as Mac grabbed his back pack and slid it over his shoulders with determination. "My mom and dad have already left for the golf course. They won't be back until after lunch, and Marcela doesn't even have a license."

Marcela was the Bozer's housekeeper and she was officially in charge of the boys anytime Bozer's parents were out. Mac liked the way she would talk to them in Spanish, teaching them names for everyday items. She also cooked authentic Mexican meals like her secret family recipe for churro doughnuts. Once after Jack had tried her huevos rancheros, he threatened to marry the woman for her cooking alone. A statement that had made Marcela blush and giggle like the girls in Mac's fifth grade class despite being as old as Mac's grandpa Harry. It had started a habit of her sending leftovers home with Mac. Mac was just glad his brother hadn't asked to stay over at Bozer's when Mac did. But despite her skills in the kitchen, Marcela ran a tight ship, watching the boys like a hawk.

"We have our bikes."

"Again, Marcela is in charge." Bozer put his hands on his hips, slowly shaking his head. "She is not going to let us take off to your place on our bikes. She has to say a Hail Mary when we ride to the clubhouse. Even if she doused us in Holy Water and made us both wear a Rosary for protection she wouldn't let us go all the way across town."

"I don't want to go to my house. I want to go to Colton's." Mac had made up his mind to go with or without Bozer.

"Are you crazy?" Bozer cried, and then lowered his voice to a harsh whisper. "Colton's is even farther away and we'd have to ride on the highway."

"But Mama's Diner is close by." Mac already had a plan in mind. "When we tell her Jack is missing, she will take us to the bar."

Bozer folded his arms over his chest, doubt clearly written in his dark eyes. "But I still don't think Marcela will go for it."

"We could tell her that we're going to Penny Parker's to return the book you borrowed from her last week and that we'll stay in the neighborhood. Mama's is technically a neighborhood restaurant, just not specifically this neighborhood." Mac knew he was asking a lot of his best friend, but Jack was his brother and Mac would do anything for his family. "Marcela loves you, Boze. She calls you her pequeno angel de ebano."

"The woman is crazy about me. I'm the only one who gets into her Spanish soap operas." Bozer was far from modest when it came to the fact he tended to win people over with his personality without even trying. Mac was always in awe, and maybe a little jealous, of the ease Bozer had around not only teachers and other adult, but the other students at their school as well. He'd even made friends with the high school students in their summer class, talking to them about everything from the latest movies to bands. Mac sometimes felt more akin to Marcela, like he was from a foreign country, often speaking a language those around him barely understood. "I guess I could charm us a pass out of here for an hour or so, but if she finds out, or my parents do, it's going to cost me big time." Bozer's face turned completely serious. "The last time I did something un-Bozer-like when we broke into the school so you could try that experiment, I lost not only my television time for a week, but my rental privileges at Video Gallery."

"I will make sure Jack recognizes your sacrifice." Mac patted his best friend's shoulder. "It might just earn you the Dalton Merit Badge of Courage."

"Does that mean Jack will finally tell me some of his war stories and maybe even show me a few of his Chuck Norris moves?" Bozer looked excited at the prospect of learning any type of hand to hand combat skill, not to mention getting a firsthand account of any fight scene he could put in a future film.

"I doubt it," Mac answered truthfully. Jack liked to talk about the war almost as much as Mac was willing to discuss their mom. He had showed Mac how to throw a punch and more importantly how to block one after Mac came home from school with a bruise on his face, but Jack, despite what most people might think, didn't encourage Mac to be aggressive. Instead, he assured Mac his best weapons were going to be his brain and his heart. "But he might let you come with us to Disney Land."

"Cool." Bozer seemed appeased. "I'll go tell Marcela we're going to take a few laps around the neighborhood, and then stop by Penny's house to give her a book that she leant me the last time I was over and that I want to borrow another one in the series because the main character was left dangling in the last one and it might take a while so we could be late and…"

"Maybe I should be the one to talk to Marcela." Mac held up a hand cutting off Bozer's rambling. Despite Bozer's aptitude when it came to conversing with adults, he was terrible at any kind of deception. Mac, on the other hand, often found talking around the truth rather easy. Sometimes he worried it was a skill he'd inherited from his father, but like Jack always said, a guy should play to his strengths. Maybe one of Mac's weapons was also going to be his ability to pretend what he was saying was the complete truth, sort of like an actor in a play. Bozer always said Mac did a good job when he performed the different roles from his screenplays. He put a hand on Bozer's shoulder, making sure he had the other boy's attention. "I can ask her in Spanish, which she always likes, and you just stand there and look like whatever an ebony angel looks like."

"Gotch'a." Bozer nodded, making a locking motion over his lips while miming throwing away the imaginary key.

No one was more surprised than Mac when the pretend seal actually held and Bozer stayed quiet throughout Mac's explanation about them going to Penny's. He felt slightly bad when Marcela sent some churros along for the girl, who, from what Mac could tell had not bothered to learn even one word of Spanish, but had somehow entranced the Bozer's housekeeper. Like Bozer, Penny had no problem winning over adults. Mac thought it might have something to do with the way her hair always sparkled like it had somehow trapped sunlight in the individual strands and how she oddly smelled like strawberry ice cream, but he had no quantifiable evidence to say for certain, nor did he really care to find out. Jack said one day Mac would be more interested in experimenting with girls than he was with his chemistry set, but Mac highly doubted the probability of that prediction. It was as likely as the one Jack made each year about The Cowboys winning The Super Bowl. Any guilt Mac felt had vanished-right along with the churro donuts the two boys split- by the time he and Bozer reached the diner.

Mama Colton's was busy as it typically was on a weekend morning. Mac hadn't been able to help the wave of disappointment he felt when he didn't catch sight of Harry's jeep or Jack's GTO as he scanned the crowded parking lot. The bell rang over the door as he pushed his way in to be greeted by no other than Riley Davis. She was standing in the entrance with its gumball machines and a rack of newspapers, blocking the way to the main dining area like some kind of gatekeeper. Riley was holding a stack of menus and gave Mac a frown as he and Bozer made their way to stand in front of her.

"Table for two?" She arched a brow, looking over Mac's shoulder as if she were expecting someone else to appear. "Or is your big brother the bully coming too?"

"My brother's not a bully." Mac clenched his fists, the sudden jolt of anger surprising him.

"Right, he only shoots people for a living." Riley gave Bozer a sharp look, using his words from yesterday to make her point.

"Jack's a soldier," Mac defended heatedly. "He fights to keep our country safe."

Riley rolled her eyes, and Mac was surprised when Bozer stepped alongside him. "Didn't you tell me you moved here from New York?"

"Yeah," Riley answered, glancing down to her shoes as if she suddenly got Bozer's point without him having to mention the attack on the city that prompted the war in which Jack now fought. When her eyes met Mac's again, they weren't quite as hard. "So, do you two want a table or not?"

"We want to talk to Mama."

"Get in line. So does every hungry person in Mission City." Riley stood her ground, jerking her thumb over her shoulder to the many tables and booths behind her, most of them filled with waiting customers. Mac caught site of Mama Colton across the room, taking an order. Riley lifted the menus in her hand. "We're slammed, which is why Mama's probably breaking some kind of child labor law by letting me work this morning but I'm still making money to get my new game controller so I'm not going to turn her in."

"It won't take long." Mac thought about just going around Riley even if she looked as if she might tackle anyone who tried to bypass her post, but Bozer caught his sleeve.

"How about you just give us a table, Sunshine," Bozer jammed his free hand in his jeans pockets, pulling out a very wrinkled dollar bill which he offered to Riley with a winning smile. "In Mama Colton's section please?" When Mac shot his best friend an incredulous look, Bozer shrugged. "What? It's what my dad does when he wants good service."

"My name is not Sunshine," Riley snapped, snatching the dollar from Bozer's fingers, "but I will take your money and show you to your seat, gentlemen."

She spun on her heel, her ponytail swinging behind her. Riley wove her way through a crowd of exiting patrons like a tiny pro offensive lineman. Mac and Bozer moved to catch up as she didn't slow until she stopped at the very last booth at the back of the diner. Mac and Bozer had no sooner slid into the booth, Riley placing the menus in front of them when Mama Colton appeared at their table.

"Well good morning, boys." Mama smiled at Mac. "I thought you'd be on your way to the museum by now, young man." She looked around the restaurant. "Where is that scoundrel brother of yours?"

"Jack didn't come home last night." Mac blurted out. "He won't answer his phone. Jack always answers his phone."

"Okay." Mama propped a hand on her hip.

"What's the big deal?" Riley piped up. "My dad didn't come home last night either."

"Your dad didn't come home?" Mama asked and Mac's bad feeling was suddenly back full force.

"It's nothing new for him." Riley shrugged a shoulder, moving her dark gaze to Mac. "He stays out with friends sometimes. Maybe your brother did the same."

"Jack wouldn't forget our plans because he was hanging out with his friends."

"Of course not," Riley rolled her eyes. "Because Jack is perfect."

"Riley, baby," Mama interrupted before Mac could respond. She put her hand on the girl's shoulder. "How about you run upstairs and ask your mom to come down here a minute. Maybe she can shed some light on this situation for us."

Mac noted that Riley gave Mama a look like she really wanted to say no to the restaurant owner's request, but decided against it when the older woman returned a narrowed glance that spoke to the fact that opting out was not a wise choice. Riley gave a put upon sigh before turning and moving towards a door marked 'Staff Only' situated in between the two restrooms. Mac knew that beyond the exit was a spiral staircase that led to the apartment over the restaurant. Jack had lived there for a while after their mom had died, when he and Mac's dad weren't getting along.

"Riley's dad and Jack got into an argument yesterday," Mac supplied as soon as Riley had disappeared behind the door. He looked up at Mama, not wanting to get Riley's family in trouble but needing Mama Colton to understand why the fact Randy Davis hadn't come home the night before made it even more important that they find Jack.

"Mr. Davis almost ran over Mac with a car, and Jack was about to show him some of his best Delta commando moves but Mrs. Davis broke it up before the show got started," Bozer supplied. Mac gave his best friend an exasperated look. He wasn't going to tell the _entire_ story.

"Really now?" Mama lifted an eyebrow, eyes locking on Mac. "How did you happen to almost get struck by a car?"

"I was trying to help a stray dog I found at Colton's," Mac explained, unhelpfully if Mama's look of confusion was any indication. "Riley's dad might have been trying to run over the dog when I did so."

"I see." Mama glanced over her shoulder to the tables full of customers and the two other waitresses darting around like worker bees in and out of a hive. When she turned back to the boys, her smile was tight and appeared almost painful. "I'm sure we can get this all cleared up, and have you on your way to the museum in no time, Angus."

Mac didn't even bother to correct Mama Colton concerning his name, too concerned by what he could tell was her 'I'm really worried, but I'm not going to tell the little kid that I'm worried' look on her face.

"You must be Bozer?" Mama continued when Mac didn't respond.

"Yes, Mam." Bozer replied, casting a quick glance to Mac before smiling up at the woman. "Mac says you have the best buttermilk pie in town."

"One, you can call me Mama," Mama said, "and two, I have the best buttermilk pie this side of the Mississippi. You'll have to have come back and try it for yourself sometime." Mama laid a hand on Mac's hair, "Unlike Jack Dalton, I don't believe in feeding growing boys pie for breakfast. Although I could rustle you two up some pancakes?"

"I'm not hungry." Mac shook his head. "I just want to find Jack. Can you take us to Colton's?"

Before Mama could answer, Riley returned with her mother in tow. Diane looked as if she had just gotten out of bed, only half awake. She was wearing the same t-shirt she'd had on the day before at the bar and her hair was pulled up in a messy knot on top of her head. Mac remembered his mom wearing her hair in a similar way. She called it her 'simply don't care Saturday hair'. Diane dropped both her arms over Riley's shoulders pulling the little girl against her as she stood in front of Mama with a drowsy expression. Mac noticed she was wearing pink fuzzy slippers instead of shoes. For an instant Mac no longer felt sorry for Riley for having a rotten dad, instead he envied her the mom she still had. He felt tears prick his eyes and blinked to keep them at bay, feeling an even more urgent need to find Jack.

"Is everything alright?" Diane asked around a big yawn.

"I hope so," Mama replied. "Did Jack leave before you last night?"

Diane shook her head. "He was still closing the bar area when I left. I told him that Wallace and the kitchen staff would lock up. Why?"

"It seems he didn't make it home last night. What about Randy?" Mama asked, an edge to her voice that Mac hadn't heard before.

"What about him?" Diane's voice changed as well and she stepped away from Riley, folding her arms over her chest as her body went perfectly straight. It was a posture Mac had watched teachers use sometimes when the principal would unexpectedly step into their classroom. "He was home before me. He's upstairs asleep."

"Is that so?" Mama Colton mimicked Diane by crossing her arms as well. Mac and Bozer exchanged looks and Mac was pretty sure Bozer had a gleam in his eye as he entertained the idea that Mama Colton might demonstrate some fighting skills of her own. Riley kept her gaze on the floor, scraping her black Converse shoe in a circle.

"Why wouldn't he be?" Diane challenged.

"I didn't see your car outside this morning," the diner owner explained without exposing Riley as her source of information. "I know you caught a ride with Rowena from the bar last night."

"I don't understand what my husband's whereabouts have to do with Jack Dalton." Diane ran a hand over her hair with a huff of air. "He seemed to be popular with his customers last night. Maybe he chose to go home with one of them."

Mac was about to object to Diane's suggestion when Mama quickly untied her apron, tossing it to Diane. "Maybe you should take over my shift while I just go check on things at Colton's for myself?"

"I'm not exactly dressed for work," Diane pointed out.

"Then it's a good thing Mission city isn't New York," Mama said, handing off her notepad and pen to the other woman. "I'm pretty sure our patrons will be just fine with your wardrobe as long as you keep their coffee refilled and get their food to them while it's still hot." Mama turned to the boys. "Are you two coming?"

Bozer and Mac quickly slid from their seats to follow after the diner owner. Riley surprised Mac by catching his hand as he started after Mama Colton.

"I hope you find your brother," the girl said, quietly.

Mac glanced to Diane who was fumbling to get the apron around her waist, then back to Riley, giving her a little nod. "Me too."

Mac was hopeful even after Mama Colton stopped by his house to make sure Jack hadn't overslept and turned off his phone. Like Mac had suspected, his brother was not at their home, nor was Harry's jeep in the driveway. He tried not to let the panic that had been threatening him since his brother didn't show up that morning overtake him completely. Mac worked on keeping his breath steady just like Jack had coached him when he'd go to visit their mom at the hospital, when Mac had been frightened by all the machines and wires that made her seem like a stranger. Even when Mac's heart sped up, pounding against his chest as they pulled into Colton's and the only car in the parking lot was the silver one Randy Davis had been driving when he nearly ran Mac over the day before, Mac was determined to stay calm and to be brave.

"Bozer, how about you go around back and make sure Jack didn't park his car there while Mac and I check inside." Bozer gave the woman a sharp salute and took off around the building as Mac and Mama Colton started for the front door. Mac kept step with the bar owner even when every instinct urged him to run. Mama placed a hand on Mac's shoulder as if she could read his mind, and wanted to keep him at her side. "I'm sure there is a perfectly logical explanation for all this, Mac."

Mac wanted to believe her, even when they made it to the door and found it already open; but as they walked in to the bar and Mama Colton turned on the lights his mind ran wild with all the worst case scenarios he'd been fending off. Randy Davis was sprawled on the floor in front of the bar, several empty glass bottles scattered around him.

"Is he dead?" Mac asked, his voice catching as he let his eyes frantically search the room for any trace of his brother.

"We should be so lucky." Mama let out a loud harrumph, glancing to Mac. "He's more than likely sleeping of his bender, but he might wish he was dead when I'm finished with him."

Instead of kneeling and checking the man's pulse like the people on television typically did, Mama gave Riley's father a swift kick to the side. He let out a low groan, his eyes fluttering a few times before they finally opened. Randy gave another louder groan when Mama leaned over him so her face was right above his.

"What's going on?" He demanded, rubbing at his eyes.

"That's a very good question indeed, Randall." Mama straightened, continuing to glower at the man on the floor. "Maybe you should scrape yourself up from there and fill me in."

"Where's Lou?" Randy rolled over and made a huge effort to push himself to his knees. "Did that stupid shit leave me here?"

"Is Lou the one who helped you drink all my expensive whiskey and then left my bar unlocked on his way out?" Mama took a step back as the man made it to his feet, swaying. "Because I'd like to have a little chat with him myself."

"I'll pay you for your liquor." Randy had steadied himself enough to kick one of the bottles, sending it skittering across the floor. He reached his hand to his back pocket, frowning when he didn't find what he was looking for. "Sonofa…"

"Watch your language," Mama cut him off, taking a step forward. "I don't want your money. I want to know if you've seen Jack Dalton."

"Who?" Randy seemed to still be having a hard time following. He rubbed a hand over his face. When he did Mac noted the nicks and bruises on the man's knuckles. There was also a splattering of red on the front of his shirt, which Mac hoped might have come from one of the bottles he'd been drinking from, but that Mac knew looked a lot like blood.

"My brother," Mac stepped forward, his fists clenched so tightly he could feel his nails cutting into the palms of his hands. He looked up at Riley's dad, not caring if the man towered over him and looked like he could topple at any time. "Did you do something to him?"

Randy smirked at Mac. "I don't know what you're talking about, kid."

"You better hope you don't," Mama said, gesturing to Randy's hand, which he made an effort to cover with his other.

He opened his mouth to say something just as Bozer bounded in the door.

"Mac!" Bozer leaned forward, hands on his knees, panting. "You need to come out here. Now!"

"Did you find Jack?" Mac's heart started to race again as Bozer gave a quick shake of his head, taking a few gulps of air before he gestured over his shoulder.

"No, but I found your dog."

Mac started to tell his best friend he couldn't worry about Archimedes at the moment but Bozer didn't give him the chance nor did he take the time to explain further before turning and dashing back out the door. Mac followed, not waiting for Mama Colton, even when she called for them both to hold up a damn minute.

Bozer skidded to a stop once they were behind the bar, close to the trash bins. "Over there," He pointed to a stand of high grass that lay between the garbage containers and the woods in the distance. Archimedes was sitting just outside the tall strands, something firmly clamped in his mouth. "See him?" Bozer asked. "Look what he has."

Mac took a few steps forward as he heard Mama calling to him. He ignored the bar owner as he realized what had wound Bozer up. Archimedes had a hat gripped between his teeth. An Army baseball cap that Mac easily recognized as his brother's. "Jack."

"What's wrong?" Mama came alongside Mac, putting a hand on his shoulder.

Mac didn't answer. This time he gave into his instincts telling him to run. He started for Archimedes, the dog waiting until Mac was only a few feet away before turning and taking off into the brush with Jack's hat. Mac could hear feet pounding behind him as he pumped his legs to keep sight of Archimedes in the thick weeds. The down-hill grade caught Mac off guard and he nearly fell before balancing himself and readjusting to the slope. Mama was calling for him to stop, to please wait, but the easily detectable fear in her voice did nothing but propel Mac to move faster. He was good at running. Jack said he was quick and lithe like a deer. It was a skill he'd developed out of necessity but came to enjoy, in sort of the same way Forrest Gump had, but Mac was so intent on keeping his eyes forward, locked on Archimedes as he roughly pushed through the grass that he wasn't minding the terrain he was covering as closely as he should. Mac tripped, landing hard enough on his hands and knees to send pain jarring through his whole body. It wasn't the jolting fall however that stole his breath, which caused his heart stutter to an abrupt stop for a brief second inside his chest, but the sight of Jack's bloodied face before him.

"No!" Mac gasped, pushing himself up to his knees, backpedaling away from the gory sight that was the thing of his nightmares. He'd had ones just like this. Vivid, terror-inducing dreams of stumbling across Jack's broken body on a battlefield strewn with soldiers who'd been ambushed by shelling or surprised by a landmine. Sometimes Jacks limbs would be torn from his body, half his face missing, like in the pictures of war someone had cruelly taped to the inside of his locker door last year. Those were the nights Mac woke up screaming, nights he made his grandfather promise not to tell Jack about how Mac had cried himself back to sleep, completely inconsolable because Harry had no way of guaranteeing that Jack was completely safe, that he was even alive because there was no way to contact him. Mac's sleep had only gotten worse after Mac's father had left. And now the thing Mac feared the most, the horror Mac only faced at night, had escaped his nightmares and followed him into reality, taunting him in the bright light of day. "No. No. NO."

"Mac!" Bozer had stopped a few feet away, doubled over again, breathing hard. Mac couldn't bring himself to look at his best friend. He only had eyes for his downed brother. Jack was lying on his stomach, his face turned towards Mac, one hand reaching forward as if he was searching for something to hold onto, the other trapped somewhere under him. Although his body seemed intact, there was dried blood covering one side of his pale face, and his neck. Jack's hair glistened wetly in the sun with what Mac suspected was more blood. There were bruises on his brother's cheek, a jagged cut above his eye, another across his top lip. More importantly, Mac couldn't tell if Jack was breathing.

"Mac?" Bozer tried again, dropping to his knees this time. "Is he okay? Is he alright?"

The quiver in Bozer's voice snapped Mac out of his momentary shock, temporarily releasing him from fear's grip. He scrambled forward to press a shaking hand against his brother's throat, placing his fingers over the carotid artery just like his gym teacher had taught him when they were practicing for their President's Fitness test in PE. It took a moment in which Mac was pretty sure he himself had forgotten how to breathe but finally he felt the quick flutter of a pulse beneath his fingers.

"He's alive." Mac glanced to Bozer. "Go get help. Hurry."

Bozer didn't have a chance to push himself up or turn around before Mama was there, right behind him. Her sharp intake of breath brought Mac's gaze from Jack once more and he felt hot tears slide down his face as he blinked up at the woman. "Do something!"

"Bozer," Mama Colton's voice was calm but forceful. She gripped Bozer's shoulders and practically lifted him off the ground. "I need you to go back up to the bar. Run. Use the phone in the kitchen to call 9-1-1. Then tell Randy to get you the first aid kit off the wall and bring it down here." Mama turned Bozer to face her, her voice growing sharp. "You be sure and tell him if he doesn't do as I say I will personally send my boys to collect that sizeable loan I made him last month and have them take the interest he owes me out of his miserable hide. Do you understand, baby?"

"Yes, mam." Bozer gave a nod and took off back towards the high grass.

"Mac," Mama Colton moved to Mac's side, carefully making her way to the ground. "How about you…"

"I'm not leaving him!" Mac snapped, interrupting the woman before she could tell him to go help Bozer or do some other task that was meant to protect him from whatever happened next, his fingers twisting in the fabric of Jack's tshirt.

"I was going to say, why don't you move over just a bit so I can get a better look at your big brother?"

Mac looked up at Mama Colton, moving a little to the side so she could get closer to Jack. When he did, he caught sight of the little stray dog, sitting on its haunches only a few feet from them, Jack's hat laying in front of it. He gave the dog a small smile, before moving his gaze back to Mama, who was hovering over Jack.

The little boy watched the woman move her hand over his brother's hair. She winced when her fingers reached the back of Jack's head. Mac understood why when she pulled her hand away and blood smeared each finger. Mama didn't seem fazed even though Mac's stomach turned at the sight. She deftly wiping the gore on the grass before continuing to run her hands over Jack's shoulder and along his side.

"He's hurt bad," Mac said, a quiver in his voice.

Mama took her eyes from Jack for long enough to flash Mac what he could tell was a fake smile. "Now, I'm not a doctor, but I did raise a husband and three boys so my vast expertise is telling me that what we're looking at is one unlucky participant in a good old-fashioned brawl. In my experience boys get into fights all the time and are just fine."

"Jack hasn't been fighting." Mac lifted his brother's hand in his. He might not have agreed with Bozer's ideas about what Jack was capable of when it came to hand to hand combat, but Mac did know his brother was more than capable of defending himself. "He's not used his fists."

"I didn't say he was an active participant, baby." Mama held Mac's gaze, patting his hand that was now wrapped firmly around Jack's. "I'm guessing this big knot and gash on the back of your brother's head made it pretty hard for him to take his part."

"A sneak attack?" Mac surmised, his fingers tightening around Jacks hand. He'd watched enough of Bozer's cop shows to understand what Mama was saying. It didn't take Mac long to put the other pieces of the puzzle together. "Do you think Randy did this?"

"Maybe." Mama hedged, "Some of it at least."

Mac now understood the kind of anger he'd seen overtake his brother on occasion. The way Jack had exploded on Mac's dad the day Mac had gotten hurt while in The Cave of the Wind suddenly made more sense in his young mind. Before this instant, realizing that a person had purposively hurt one of the people Mac loved most in the world, Mac couldn't ever remember wanting to hit someone, not even stupid Donnie, who he knew was responsible for putting the pictures of the dead soldiers in his locker. But now, Mac could think of nothing he wanted to do more than to unleash what Bozer might call a Chuck Norris style smack down on Riley's dad.

"Jack, can you hear me?" Mama had put her hand on Jack's shoulder, giving it a little shake. "Jack Dalton!"

Mac jumped at the harsh tone, and was about to take his new found wrath out on the woman who was currently yelling at his injured brother but then Jack let out a low groan much like the one Randy had earlier, a A rush of relief instantly overshadowed Mac's fury. Much to the ten year old's disbelief, Jack's eyelids fluttered before managing to stay open just a slit. A pained frown appeared on his face. "What…"

All it took was the sound of his brother's voice, albeit barely audible, for Mac to nearly crawl over Mama to get in his brother's line of sight. He tightened his grip on Jack's hand. "Jack? Wake up. It's Mac."

"Mac?" Jack blinked again, his hand curling tightly around Mac's fingers for a moment, as his breathing increased. He tried to move but pain seemed to stop him and he groaned again. "What's going on?"

"I wouldn't try any big moves if I were you, son," Mama warned, keeping her hand on Jack's shoulder as he struggled to push himself up off the ground. "In fact, it might be smart if you just stayed where you are until the ambulance comes. I don't know what might be broken."

"No." Jack growled, tugging his hand out of Mac's grip to continue his effort to make it to sitting. Mac was torn between wanting his brother to listen to Mama's advice, and needing to see Jack up and looking more like himself. When Jack was mostly to a semi-upright position, he leveled a slightly unfocused gaze on Mama, one of his eyes completely swollen shut. "No ambulance."

"Jack?" Mac brought a hand up to his brother's face, but wasn't sure where he could touch and not hurt Jack more. There was blood smeared under Jack's nose and the bruises across his cheek looked worse now that Mac could see the other side of his brother's face. He twisted his hand in Jack's shirt instead, trying not to let the tears he could feel building in his eyes overflow. "Are you okay?"

"Hey now…" Jack said breathlessly, reaching for Mac with the hand that wasn't tucked across his stomach, tugging him closer. "I'm good, bud. Just a few cuts and bruises that's all."

Mac felt guilty for latching onto his brother with a fierceness he couldn't quite seem to help. Even when Jack made a small hiss of pain as Mac buried into his chest, Mac couldn't quite convince his arms to let go. He pressed his face against the side of Jack's neck, not caring if it smelled like copper and sweat. There was still the faint, familiar scent of Jack underneath, one that represented safety and comfort.

"Easy," Jack soothed, rubbing a hand up and down Mac's back. He made shushing noises against Mac's hair when Mac tried to bite back the sob that had been building since Jack had awoke. "Mama, could you…"

"Come on, Angus." Mama reacted instantly to Jack's words, her hands gripping Mac's shoulders as she gently eased him away from his hurting brother. "Let's see if we can get this mule-headed man on his feet."

Mac reluctantly let his brother go, wiping his hand roughly over his face. He scooted back on his knees so Mama could get close enough to Jack to pull one arm over her shoulder. Mac stayed on the other side, lending his own shoulder so Jack could keep himself steady.

Jack cursed under his breath as he made it upright. He teetered, leaning on Mama as he curled his arm around his middle again with a gasp. "Give me a minute," he bit out, his voice strained and laced with pain.

"Jack?" Mac looked up at his brother, trying to convince himself that the fact Jack was standing meant he was going to be okay, even if under all the bruises and smeared blood Jack's skin was the color of notebook paper.

"Don't worry, little brother. I'm not going to throw up on you." Jack tried to joke though the lines on his face deepened.

"It's okay," Mac assured. "You still owe me from the last time I had the flu."

Jack gave a small chuckle, which was quickly followed by another loud groan. "Don't make me laugh."

"Your ribs?" Mama asked, quietly.

Despite the hushed tone, Mac still heard the woman's question and searched his brother's face as Jack gave a sharp little nod. "I think I'm busted up pretty good."

"Who did this?" Mama demanded, her icy tone bringing Mac's gaze to her.

"I don't remember, but I could make a guess," Jack said still a little breathlessly. "I was focused on the dog, thought I'd been shot…" He straightened suddenly, letting out another string of curses. "The dog…is he…"

"Archimedes helped me find you," Mac was quick to tell his brother, glancing behind Jack to see that the pup was gone. Jack's hat the only sign that he'd been there. "He's fine."

"Then I owe him some more of Wally's leftovers." Jack forced a smile, his clenched teeth and the blood on his lips making it a little more frightening than comforting, but Mac understood the attempt his brother was making and he leaned closer to Jack as he swayed slightly.

"Can you make it to the bar?" Mama asked.

"If we go a snail's speed, maybe." Jack's voice was shaky and Mac had to blink back more tears, realizing his brother was in pain. He looked at Mac, giving a wink with his good eye. "With your and Mac's help that is."

"We could wait for Randy…" Mama Colton offered.

"No," Jack said quickly and Mac watched his brother swallow reflexive a few times as if he was working hard to keep his earlier promise about not throwing up on them. "Let's just do this while I can."

It seemed to Mac it took them an hour to cover the ground it had taken him mere minutes to cross. Jack's pained grunts and labored, shallow breathing hadn't helped the warped since of time and the fact he'd started to rely more and more on Mama's help to remain standing slowed them down considerably. They'd nearly made it to the steepest part of the hill, the incline that they'd have to manage if they were going to get to the pavement, when Randy appeared above them. He was carrying the first aid kit, looking extremely put out by the task he was performing.

"Ambulance is about five minutes out," he informed them gruffly, dropping the medical supplies on the ground by the trash dumpsters. "That kid you sent is staying on the phone with them and I called a ride. I'm out of here."

"You are not out of here," Mama snapped, her icy gaze narrowing. "We need your help."

Mac could tell the woman was struggling with bearing most of Jack's weight now. She was sturdy, but considering Jack was over six feet tall and weighed almost two hundred pounds Mac knew it would be hard for her to get his brother up the hill, even with Mac's help.

"No." Jack lifted his head and looked at Mama. "I can do it."

"You heard Mr. Big and Bad Army Ranger," Randy sneered. "The hero can make it up here on his own."

Mac didn't want Randy Davis touching his brother, but he wanted to get Jack help which Riley's dad was all too capable of providing. Another surge of anger washed through him as Randy ignored Mama's order for him to get his ass down there immediately. Mac let go of his brother, scrambling up the hill. He latched onto the back of Randy's shirt with no other thought than to stop the man from going.

"Get off me, brat." Randy jerked roughly to pull away from Mac's grasp, stumbling on his still unsteady feet when Mac continued to hold on. Davis whipped around, swinging his arm out to keep his balance. As he did his hand caught Mac on the side of the head with a glancing blow. The hit stunned Mac more than it hurt, but it had the little boy seeing stars and was hard enough to dislodge his grip on Davis's shirt and to knock the ten year old to the ground.

Mac heard a roar and Mama Colton's sharp exaltation of 'Jack' before he saw a blur of black rush past him. He wasn't sure how his brother managed the hill on his own, but he'd read stories about adrenaline giving people super human strength. Jack had not only found the ability to run in his condition, but he threw a punch to Davis's face with enough force that the man dropped to the ground as if the pavement was suddenly magnetized and he was made of solid metal. Mac wasn't sure if Jack fell as well then or purposefully went to the ground but he landed on top of Randy, delivering one blow after another.

"Jack!" Mama had also made it up top, standing just to the side of the men. "Stop it right now! Do you hear me?"

Randy was attempting to get away from the attack, and Mac wasn't sure if his brother hadn't heard Mama or just didn't care for the woman's command because he continued to straddle the other man, striking him over and over again.

"Jack!" Mac was suddenly afraid, mostly for his brother, but also for Riley's dad. He had wanted him to pay for hurting Jack, but he didn't want Jack to kill him. He suddenly wondered if Bozer might have been right about Jack's hand to hand combat abilities because Mac's brother had stopped hitting the other man, only to wrap his fingers around Randy's neck and he worried Riley's dad would soon have his throat ripped out, a scene Mac had barely made it through in the movie version, especially when Bozer played it back in slow motion.

Fortunately for Davis, Jack only lifted the man from the ground and slammed him back onto the pavement, leaning over so their bloodied faces almost touched. "Don't you ever put a hand on my brother again, you sorry sonofabitch or I will end you."

"Let him go, Jack!" Mama ordered, gripping Jack's arm and trying to propel him to his feet. "Now, son. Get up."

Jack finally stood, pulling from Mama's hold as he turned towards Mac.

"Mac? You okay?"

For one brief second, Mac felt a flash of fear race through him as his brother weaved and swayed his way towards him, covered in his and Randy Davis's blood. He fought the initial instinct to back away, instead scrambling to his feet to plow headlong into his brother, nearly sending both of them back to the ground.

"Hey," Jack held onto him. "Are you alright? Look at me."

Mac felt a laugh bubble up inside him at his brother, who Mac could feel trembling from the sheer effort of staying upright. Jack asking _him_ if he was okay was so completely Jack, that another sob escaped instead. He fought to keep his emotions in control as he pulled away from his brother, looking up to give a nod. "I'm okay." It was a lie. Mac was far from okay, but what ailed him had nothing to do with Randy knocking him to the ground.

"That's good, bud." Jack reached out, running a hand over Mac's hair. He let his fingers rest on the back of Mac's neck, giving the little boy a tremulous grin, which Mac valiantly returned. "Because I'm going to pass out now, kiddo… and I really need you to be okay."

Mac's smile was dashed under by a wave of panic. He reached out to try and catch his brother as Jack's face went slack and he started to sink to his knees. Mama suddenly appeared on Jack's other side, helping Mac ease his brother back to the ground.

"Uh, Mama," Jack ground out, eyes squeezed shut, his breath catching. It seemed to Mac he was having trouble with drawing in the next one. "I think…I might need that ambulance after all."

"Never doubted it, baby," the woman patted Jack's shoulder. "Just take it easy, try to breathe in nice and slow. Mama Colton will take care of everything."

Mac gripped Jack's hand, staying as close to him as possible. He scanned his brother's face, afraid that if Jack passed out again, he might not wake up.

"Don't be afraid, bud…" Jack seemed to read his mind. He managed to look at Mac through narrowed slits, clearly struggling to breathe now. "It's okay…I promise."

"Please don't go. Don't leave," Mac whispered, ducking his head. He closed his eyes, not caring if tears fell from his lashes now. The words brought tiny stabs of pain to Mac's heart as he realized he'd once uttered the very same things to his mother, curled at her side, head on her chest, his back pressed up against the cold metal railings of her crowded bed as he breathed in the chemical smells of her hospital gown.

Jack's shaking hand brushed Mac's cheek, the touch saying what Jack no longer could. Mac lay down, resting his head on Jack's shoulder as he heard the wail of an ambulance in the distance. A lone howl from the woods echoed the siren. Mac gripped his brother's shirt, unable to stop thinking about their mom as he listened to Jack's raspy breath, felt his fingers card through Mac's hair before abruptly going still.

Mac squeezed his eyes shut. Sometimes having a perfect memory was not fun, even if it allowed Mac to recite events he'd read only once, recall formulas he'd seen briefly. Right now he'd do anything to forget, to have no sense he'd done all this before. Mac had only been five, but he recalled exactly how he'd asked over and over again for his mom to stay with him as Jack had held them both from their mother's other side. Mac's father had been in the chair across the room his head bowed, shoulders shaking from the silent tears he was trying to hide. Mac's mother hadn't listened, hadn't heeded her son's begging. Mac's pleas and Jack's arms were unable to keep her tethered to their world. She'd closed her eyes one last time, slipping away like smoke, leaving Mac forever. His dad had pulled a similar feat, vanishing like vapor. And now…Mac glanced up at Jack's face, letting his tears fall freely now as it appeared his brother might have done the very same thing.

To be continued….


	4. Chapter 4

For Family

By: Ridley James

A/N: I can't believe we are to the last chapter or that it took me _so_ long to get here. I apologize for the delay and I am so grateful for each and every review and comment on this second story in the series. I am planning another soon, possibly for Christmas, and can't wait to share it with you all who have taken a chance on this little AU. Thanks to Mary who made this so much better.

RcJ

Jack Dalton had almost died when he was seventeen. It was a dare gone wrong, part him showing off for some girls, and part bad luck. In a moment of reckless teen bravado he'd overestimated his abilities to swim to a sandbar in the middle of the lake and had found himself struggling to force his muscles to continue to keep him afloat when all his body seemed to want to do was shut down. It had been akin to pulling cement blocks up from the sandy bottom as he tried to dog paddle enough to stay afloat. The sensation he was currently experiencing was incredibly similar in nature. In fact, Jack felt like his head was already underwater, his arms and legs numb, completely useless as he tried to reach the surface with an urgency he could not explain.

"Jack? Can you hear me?"

A rumbling voice reached Jack from a distance, muffled as if Jack were indeed somehow trapped below the surface and it had Jack fighting harder to emerge. After a monumental effort on his part, Jack awoke with a gasp that rivaled that of a drowning man's first gulp of oxygen. His striving was rewarded with a shooting pain in his chest that nearly sent him under once more.

"Easy, bud."

A hand accompanied the words this time, a firm grasp on Jack's wrist that anchored him and kept him tethered to consciousness. He blinked furiously, almost surprised water didn't blur his vision when he gazed up into the very concerned face of Harry MacGyver.

"Harr…" Jack tried for a name, his voice rough and scratchy as if he'd been buried in sand instead of trapped in a lake. "What's going on?" He managed after a few sips of water from the cup Harry held to his lips. "Where…"

"It's about time you woke up," Harry said, interrupting Jack. He placed the cup back on the table by Jack's bed, returning to a chair he'd pulled close to the rails. "Old men aren't meant to sit in straight back chairs for long periods of time."

Jack blinked again, his vision blurring. He looked around with a groan, realizing he was in a hospital. The harsh fluorescent lighting, antiseptic smell, and the irritating oxygen cannula forcing cool air into his nasal passages were a dead give-away. He took in the monitors, the movement sending a new stabbing pain through his upper torso. Jack felt the twinge of the IV in his hand when he moved it protectively over his ribs, surprised as he looked down to find himself attached to several electronic leads.

"How long have I been here?" Jack rasped, trying to recall exactly what had happened to warrant his current condition. Thoughts of a mission gone wrong swirled in his mind but were quickly discounted as he slowly recalled he'd been on leave for almost a month. His body felt floaty, like when he'd had a really good buzz, but beyond the numbness there was a faint echo of pain that told him he'd be in for a hell of a hurt if not for the drugs he was obviously receiving from the IV.

"Three days," Harry replied, frowning at Jack. "You had us all scared, bud."

"Mac?" A sudden panic had Jack trying to push himself up in the bed as an image of his little brother's frightened face worked its way through the fog filling Jack's sluggish mind. He frantically glanced around the room, trying to recall if Mac had been involved in whatever the hell had happened to him. "Where is he? Is he okay?"

"Your brother is fine." Harry's hand was back, his fingers cool. This time gently applying pressure to Jack's shoulder to keep him flat on the bed. Harry was either stronger than Jack had believed or Jack's body was not responding to his commands to get the hell up and find Mac because he remained helpless in the bed, panting. He was torn between gratitude and embarrassment when Harry reached over and pushed the button that raised the top of the mattress allowing Jack a view of the room from a semi-upright position. "He's with your grandmother, in the cafeteria."

"Beth's here?" Jack frowned, rubbing the hand without the IV over his eyes to clear them again. He was finding it hard to understand what Harry was saying while still trying to process where he was and how he'd gotten there.

"Do you have another grandmother?" Harry matched Jack's scowl, giving a shake of his head. "I can guarantee you I didn't go and get married on my vacation."

"Like any woman would have a crusty old curmudgeon like you." Jack tried for humor, covering the emotion that rushed to the surface at Harry's indication that Jack was as much his grandson as Mac. The cocky words couldn't hide the strained quality of his voice and Harry's face instantly softened. Jack blamed the drugs and the increased pounding that had now made itself known at the base of his skull for the atypical vulnerability to simple sentiment. He felt his skin pull uncomfortably when he frowned. "Why is Nana Beth here?"

"We thought you were dying," Harry replied, not ever one to mince words, but Jack could hear the worry behind the typical gruffness. "She and JP came as soon as they could get a flight."

Jack felt a wave of nausea at the simple profession, and managed a simple. "Oh."

"Oh is right," Harry continued, running a hand over his bearded face, blowing out a huff of air. "You're out of the woods now-going to be just fine. The doctors assured us you'd make a full recovery, but it was touch and go that first night. You had swelling on your brain due to the blunt force trauma you suffered-aka you took one hell of blow from a baseball bat." He folded his arms over his chest, his eyes never leaving Jack's pale face. "Thank God your skull is like reinforced steel or we wouldn't be having this conversation. Then there were the broken ribs, one of which punctured your lung- more than likely when you not so wisely decided to get in a brawl after already being in a sorry state." Harry run a hand through his mass of gray hair this time. "See my earlier point about your head being as hard as they come."

"Colton's." Jack closed his eyes a moment, bits and pieces of his memory falling into place. He'd been completely focused on the stray dog and had let his guard down. "Someone got the drop on me."

"They did." Harry's face grew grim. "Took you out with the bat. Once you were unconscious, it seems the three of them had a high old time beating the hell out of a Delta soldier."

"Three?" Jack didn't remember the assault, which he was going to consider a blessing for the time being. He did remember hitting Diane's bastard of a husband when the guy knocked Mac to the ground. He rubbed a hand over his pounding temple, wincing when his fingers hit a tender spot of broken skin. "Was Davis with them?"

"He denied being party to what happened to you, but the police pulled one of his buddies from my wrecked Jeep, which they found off the shoulder wrapped around a tree on Morehouse Rd." Harry's voice hardened. "The driver was wasted and had no compunction about singing like a bird considering he was already on parole for a drug conviction and was now facing a grand theft auto and attempted murder charge. They found the bat with your blood on it in the backseat, along with your wallet and a roll of cash."

"Lou Ferrier?" Jack guessed, remembering one of the men Randy had brought to the bar.

"That would be the one. He fingered Davis as paying him to help teach you a lesson after you supposedly made unwanted advances on his wife."

"What?" Jack growled, hearing the beeping of the monitors increase. "I didn't…"

"Take it easy." Harry held up a hand, giving Jack a narrowed gaze. "I know you better than that. The police didn't buy his story any longer than it took for Mac to tell them about Davis nearly running him over with his car. His banged up Honda was a damning bit of evidence and Mama was quick to add that you hadn't even met Diane Davis until the day before."

"Shit, Mac had to talk to the police?" Jack hated the idea of his kid brother being put in such a position. His eyes briefly moved over his bruised knuckles. He wished he'd hit Davis a few more times.

"They took him to the station until someone could get a hold of me." Harry glanced down at his hands, before meeting Jack's gaze when Jack cursed under his breath.

"Why the hell would they do that?" Jack curled one arm over his ribs as the pain in his side made it once again through the drug haze.

"Mama Colton offered to take him with her, but apparently they couldn't technically release him into her care without Children's Services getting involved."

"Damn it." Jack didn't want to image Mac being taken into custody even if it was a temporary one. It was too close to one of his worst fears where his little brother ended up in the system. It wasn't a stretch or an irrational fear. Jack knew he could be killed on any mission he undertook with Delta. That would leave only Harry, who thanks to James selfish departure had legal guardianship of Mac, but the man was no spring chicken. Jack's grandparents loved Mac like their own but technically they weren't relatives and had no say in what might happen to the kid. James was MIA and didn't seem to want to be found. That left no one else. "Are you sure he's okay?"

"He was shaken up," Harry admitted, once more applying gentle pressure to Jack's shoulder, when the younger man attempted another shot at getting out of bed. "Mama Colton said he wanted to go in the ambulance with you, but the paramedics refused. They couldn't have an unsupervised kid on their rig. Mama promised to take him to the hospital but then the police arrived and had other ideas. It took them awhile to get ahold of me, and when I made it here he was in bad way."

"What does that mean?" Jack's pulse sped up, the monitors beeping with his increased heart rate once more. He forced his arms to cooperate this time, aided by the new surge of adrenaline. "You told me he was fine."

"I also told you that you nearly died." Harry stood from his chair, blocking Jack's weak attempt to get out of the bed. "What part of swelling of the brain and pneumothorax do you not understand, son?"

"But Mac…"

"Mac is physically okay." Harry gripped the rails of Jack's bed. "I wouldn't lie to you about that and you damn well know it. He's just…" Harry waved a hand in the air. "Gone into his head."

Jack closed his eyes and tried to take measured breaths when the room spun sickeningly around him. "He won't talk?"

"Not to me, not to Beth or JP. When he's not been here staring at you from the window over there," Harry gestured to the glass surrounding the ICU room, "he locks himself in his room with that damn pup Mama Colton brought to him from the bar." When Jack opened his eyes in surprise, Harry levelled him with a scowl. "She said it was your idea. Thanks for that by the way. All I need is one more mouth to feed and care for."

Jack could tell there was no heat behind the older man's blustering and even if Harry had been pissed about Archimedes, now was not the time for Jack to plead his case. He coughed, swallowing when bile rose in the back of his throat. "What about Bozer?"

"I'll give that kid credit." Harry leaned heavily on the rails, and Jack noted the lines of weariness on his sun-weathered face, the dark shadows beneath his eyes. "He's shown up here almost every day; that house keeper of his bringing food for the lot of us. But Mac's having none of it. It's worse than those first couple of days after James left, before you showed up."

"I'm sorry."

"I'm not blaming you, bud." Harry sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. "I just feel so damn helpless, and I want to throttle that son of mine. If I could get my hands on him…"

"What James did isn't your fault, Harry." Jack closed his eyes again, the dizziness not helping his queasy stomach at all. He allowed his body to slowly relax back into the pillow.

"That doesn't help your brother none, now does it." Something in Harry's tone brought Jack's focus back to the other man. Harry rubbed a hand over his eyes, which were suspiciously bright. Jack had only seen the old man cry once and that was at his mom's funeral. He had to fight not to look away when Harry's voice broke. "I'd do anything to take away the hurt that little boy's known, but I can't do a damn thing."

"You're here." Jack swallowed hard, gesturing to the chair Harry had been sitting in, the familiar Field and Stream magazines and newspapers strewn about as well as coffee cups and take out containers. "You haven't left Mac or me."

"Yeah well, I'm not much one for participation trophies." Harry grunted gruffly. "Whoever said showing up is 90 percent of the game obviously hadn't ever watched Kareem Abdul-Jabbar play basketball or Wayne Gretzky make a goal."

"Harry, you've done more than sit on a bench these last five years." Jack took a shallow breath, thankful that the most recent wave of nausea had passed. He tested the way his ribs reacted when he tried to sit up higher in the bed now that he was actually feeling more awake. "You put your heart in the game after mom died, picking up James's slack. I'll never forget that." He added, still a little breathless.

"What I should have done instead of stepping in as a ringer for my son is backed you a little more, bud." The old man dropped his chin to his chest for a moment, then met Jack's gaze, new determination showing behind the obvious weariness. "I'm not good at admitting when I'm wrong, but I'm going to remedy my mistake. When you get out of here, we're going to see to it that you get full custody of your brother. I did a lot of thinking while I was at the cabin and James has made a mess of things for long enough. If we have to have him declared unfit, or charge him with abandonment then so be it. I've already been talking to Sarah. She's not passed the bar yet, but she happens to think she'll have no problem putting us in touch with someone who can work it all out for us." His mouth twitched. "She's in your corner, too, by the way."

"But…" Jack's mind whirled with what Harry was proposing. It was what he'd wanted from the moment James had proven he wasn't going to be able to pull himself out of the tailspin his wife's passing had sent him into. Jack wanted nothing more than to protect Mac, to watch over him. No one, not even Sarah and his grandparents had thought him ready when he first fought for that right, but it seemed that time had a way of changing people's minds, or maybe Jack had really been the one to change. Maybe he'd undergone the kind of transformation that gave the people he loved confidence in his abilities to be the kind of man Mac needed him to be, a man-surprisingly enough- that couldn't just leap at what Harry was offering no matter how badly he might want to ensure his brother couldn't be taken away from him. Jack shifted slightly, rubbing his hand without the IV over his eyes, when his vision blurred again. "I think we should to talk to Mac about that, Harry. James is his dad. It should be his decision, not ours. And whether I like it or not, I'm still tied to the Army. I'm not sure I'm in the best position to offer him the kind of stability he needs."

Harry nodded, his eyes once more suspiciously bright. He patted Jack's shoulder. "Right now the only thing your brother needs to know is that you're awake." Harry nodded towards the door. "I'm going to let your nurse know as well." The old man started out of the room, but turned back to face Jack just short of reaching the exit. "And if Beth asks, this little chat never happened because I wasted no time in coming to get her as soon as your eyes fluttered open. You understand me, bud? The last thing I need is to be on that woman's bad side. She's already rearranged the kitchen pantry and cabinets and threatened to start in on my storage shed, claiming I could take up pottery as a hobby." Harry shook his head in disbelieve.

Jack grinned, the pain it elicited from his abused face worth the effort as he imagined Harry at a pottery wheel. "If you let Mac keep the dog, I won't throw you under the bus with Nana."

"It's a deal, kid." Harry winked at Jack. "But if I hadn't already planned on keeping that mongrel pup I wouldn't have given the go ahead for JP to be at our place tearing up my backyard to construct some kind of Fort Knox fencing system he swears can keep even the smartest cattle dog from escaping."

Jack wasn't given a chance to respond as Harry left him alone and a nurse whose nametag read Caroline quickly took his place. She poked and prodded Jack, asking him ridiculous questions about his full name-Jack Wyatt Dalton-and ordering him to tell her the current president of the United States-George W. Bush. Nurse Caroline had no sooner finished her thorough and bothersome exam of his bandages when Jack's Nana burst into the room-a good combination of Scarlett O'Hara sweeping through the doors of her grand plantation, Tara, and Miss Kittie striding into the saloon doors of The Long Branch.

"Wyatt," she proclaimed breathlessly as she moved to frame Jack's face with her soft hands. Beth had tears in her dark eyes and didn't even let Jack speak before she was planting gentle kisses to both sides of his face. Jack might not have minded had Nurse Caroline not been an attractive red head close to Jack's age. She shot him an amused grin at his grandmother's antics.

"Nana, I'm okay." He said somewhat breathlessly, trying to sit up straighter.

"Praise The Lord for that." Beth ran a hand over Jack's hair. "These last two years I've worried myself sick about you stepping on one of those dreadful bombs buried in the sand or being taken out by a radical suicide bomber like they highlight in the news and you find trouble at home, practically in your own back yard. You are hard on this old woman's heart, sweet boy."

"I'm sorry I scared you, Nana." Jack offered his best grin, at least as much of one as he could make with his busted lip and bruised face. "And you're nowhere near old."

"I knew you'd be fine," Beth let her fingers linger against his cheek for a moment before she forced a brave smile and took the seat Harry had vacated, smoothing invisible wrinkles from her colorful skirt. "It was your granddaddy who got all worked into a lather, pacing the halls of this hospital like a cougar confined to a circus cage. I finally had to set him to some tasks before he frightened the other patients." Her eyes never left Jack's face. "Harry's close to hiring him out to the neighbors because he's fixed every loose gutter, squeaky door and leaky faucet at his place. If he hadn't started on that dog lot for Angus's pup, I'm convinced he'd have tried to put a new roof on the place."

"I hear JP's not the only one working on some home improvements against Harry's wishes." Jack tried not to wince when Caroline fiddled with the bandage on his side, where she had explained earlier that the doctor had made a small incision to relieve the pressure on his collapsed lung.

Despite his efforts to not show any discomfort and add to Beth's concern, his Nana reached for his hand through the bars of the hospital bed, squeezing his fingers as if she understood his attempts for what they were. "If ever a man needed a woman's helping hand, it's Harry MacGyver. I was only obliging. In a month's time he's undone all the progress I made with his drawers and closet."

"You should keep your hands out of Harry's drawers, Nana."

Beth waved her free hand in the air as if she were swatting an annoying fly. "He's family."

"Speaking of family, where's Mac?" Jack cleared his throat, still working on taking only shallow breaths so not to aggravate his ribs as much. He glanced around his grandmother as if his little brother might have sneaked in unnoticed. He trusted that Harry wouldn't lie to him but he'd not be completely at ease until he could see for himself that Mac was okay.

Beth looked hesitant to speak, a condition that did not strike her often. Like Harry, Jack's grandmother was plain spoken, which probably explained why the two locked horns so often. She even went back to smoothing more non-existent wrinkles from her skirt.

"Nana?" Jack asked, not bothering to hide the fear in his voice.

His grandmother met his gaze once more, concern darkening her amber eyes. "As soon as Harry came through the doors of the cafeteria, Angus bolted like a frightened colt."

"What?" Jack pulled his hand from beneath Beth's, ignoring his body's loud protest as he once more prepared to get out of the bed, determined not to be deterred by his grandmother who had risen from the chair or Caroline who was now watching the machines monitoring Jack's vitals with an unhappy frown.

"Mr. Dalton, you shouldn't be getting up until the doctor has seen you," the nurse cautioned.

Jack ignored her heeding, keeping his focus on his grandmother. "Why did he run? Where did he go?"

"The where I'm not sure about. Harry went after him. I know Angus well enough to know he's not willingly going to leave this hospital without you. I have watched Harry and JP wrangle that boy to the house these last two nights and trust me when I say he is as stubborn as you ever were when he sets his mind not to do something." Unlike Harry, Beth didn't even try to stop Jack when he threw off blankets covering his lower body. She merely sighed, her hand going to the slight silver cross pendant resting at the base of her neck. "I imagine the why of your brother taking off would have something to do with the fear that's been eating away at him since the ambulance took you away from that dreadful bar. Being here," she gestured to the room, the machines so like the ones that had once surrounded their mother as she lay dying, "has been a painful reminder of much worse times I'm afraid. It is a lot for a child to take in."

"I need to find him." Jack clenched his jaw, as sitting up straight was a more painful task than he imagined, the protest of his broken ribs and bruised torso nearly stealing his breath. He had to close his eyes for a moment to let a wave of light-headedness and nausea pass, but the thoughts of what might have run through Mac's primed mind when he saw Harry helped him push through the worst of it. Wrapping one arm across his ribs, Jack turned his gaze to Nurse Caroline, her disapproving frown making her look less like the character from an Aerosmith music video Jack might have indulged in fantasizing about and a bit more like Nurse Ratched from One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest. "Can you help me?" The words lacked much strength and held more pain than Jack was happy to admit to.

"I'm not sure that would be…" she began only to be interrupted by Jack's grandmother.

"Nurse, please assist my obstinate grandson in this most unwise endeavor before he attempts it on his own and we're forced to tax our delicate natures by being afforded the task of picking him up off the floor." Beth's southern drawl was smooth and sweet like sun-warmed honey, making her entreaty sound more like a pleasant request than the dictate Jack knew that it was. "He's bound to do it with or without our permission and I for one would rather him undertake this foolishness under your professional vigilance to spare us any misunderstandings about the quality of care at your upstanding facility."

"I'll get a chair." Caroline gave a sigh, obviously understanding when she was outflanked by a worthy opponent. She pointed a finger at Jack. "Which you will use without any complaints _after_ the doctor checks you over." She turned to look at Beth, offering a slight smile. "I have never had my standard of care called into question, Mrs. Dalton, and wouldn't want to incur any incidents on my record over a misunderstanding."

"Call me Beth, Dear, and I'll come along with you to explain the delicate situation to Dr. Fillers. It's not like I've seen patients with worse constitutions than my grandson carted out of here, carrying their IV all in the name of a smoke break." Jack's Nana gave him a wink as she started out with Caroline. Jack didn't miss the 'my boy's single, you know," that she whispered as they exited the room. He would not have appreciated his grandmother's knack for meddling had not the doctor made it to his room in record time. After a cursory examination, he allowed Jack to be taken by wheelchair to search for his MIA brother, although he made it clear the activity was against his medical advice. Beth had stayed behind in the room in case Mac showed up there, which left Nurse Caroline to play chauffer.

Jack might have taken the time to enjoy the company had he not been hurting and consumed by worry for Mac. It was not like the kid to take off on his own, at least it hadn't been a pattern before James's disappearing act. The new unpredictable behavior was another thing for Jack to hold against the man when and if he ever found him. Mac also didn't typically defy any adult, let alone Harry or JP, both who Mac seemed to strive extra hard to please.

He pushed the nagging thoughts about his brother's mental state to the back of his mind as he and Caroline made a quick sweep of the cafeteria and the meditation garden just outside the eating area. Finding no trace of the ten year old, the nurse suggested they try the small chapel on the third floor. Jack hadn't been overly optimistic considering Mac's experience with church was limited to the times when they found themselves at Beth's on a weekend. Their mother had always taken them on Christmas Eve and at Easter, but after she died, James no longer embraced the tradition and hadn't given Jack the opportunity to continue taking Mac. So he was more than surprised to find Harry stationed outside the doors, standing sentry.

"Whose arm did your grandmother have to twist to get you out of that bed?" Harry turned to ask as Caroline rolled Jack right up beside him. He shook his head at the IV pole and portable oxygen, lifting his hand to stop Jack from trying to answer his question. "Never mind, I'm just glad you're here."

"Is Mac in there?" Jack swallowed thickly, hoping he would not prove the doctor's point about being vertical too early by throwing up on Nurse Caroline's shoes.

"Yes."

"Then why are you still out here?" Jack asked, his patience wearing thin right along with his adrenaline-fueled energy.

"Well it's not like your grandmother believes and I'm afraid I might burst into flames if I cross the threshold of a holy place." Harry rubbed a hand over his silver hair, causing it to stick up in random places. "In this particular case Angus wanted to be alone."

"Did he tell you that?" Jack asked, hoping his brother had finally spoken to Harry. He shifted on the wheelchair, his breath catching when his ribs and torso protested the movement.

"Hell no," Harry grumbled. "The improvised slide bar he fashioned out of a broom to block the door was my first indication." He gestured to the double doors. "He's locked us out. I couldn't have gotten in if I wanted to and neither will you."

"There's another private entrance for the Chaplin," Caroline spoke up, looking from Harry to Jack. "It comes in at the front of the room, behind the pulpit."

Jack glanced up at the nurse. "Do you have access?"

"As your grandmother might say, you are a most taxing patient, Mr. Dalton." Caroline smiled, holding up her name badge and a swipe key. "But if you'll put in a good word with her for me, I think I can manage."

RcJ

Jack found Mac in the first pew of the small chapel, directly in front of the large stained glass image of Jesus that hung beyond the podium. He'd convinced Caroline he could manage the short distance from the door without the chair and the oxygen tank after promising his grandmother would never actually sue the hospital. Sweat broke out on his face and he felt his heart pounding rapidly against his hurting ribs. His mouth watered and he had to breathe through another wave of nausea. Jack was almost grateful for the IV pole the nurse insisted he drag along because he found himself leaning heavily on it as he crossed the short span to Mac.

The ten year old didn't even look at him as Jack took a seat. Mac's eyes stayed locked on the picture of Jesus, his hands clasped in his lap.

"Hey, little brother," Jack kept his voice soft, although they were the only ones in the chapel.

"Hey, Jack." Mac's voice was quiet as well, but Jack felt a wash of relief at the sound of it, even if the monotone and lack of a reaction to his presence was troubling.

"What are you doing in here by yourself, kiddo?" Jack inched closer, not wanting to spook the little boy, but physically needing to bridge the distance between them. He was thankful to be sitting again, his legs feeling a whole hell of lot like Jell-O. But every ache faded beneath the relief of being reunited with Mac.

"Praying," Mac replied as if Jack should have realized.

"Was that Nana Beth's idea?" Jack's grandmother had treated Mac to the same nighttime rituals of prayers and a story from a well-worn Children's Bible that she had read to Jack, and Jack's father before him. JP liked to tease her that she was determined not to let any child of hers fall victim to a culture where American children could name Ronald McDonald and Elvis but had no clue when presented with a picture of Jesus Christ, but he'd always been just as adamant about saying blessings at every meal and prayers before every Cowboy's game.

"She asked me if I wanted to come here earlier to talk to God," Mac took his eyes from the stained glass to briefly meet Jack's gaze. "But I didn't want to."

"Because of you believing in the whole Big Bang Theory now?" Jack asked, moving one arm protectively over his ribs. Their grandmother had taken Mac's recent adherence to strictly scientific explanations for the universe in stride. Jack was sure that Mac's claims of science being much more predictable and tangible than the notion of an all-powerful god and therefore the more reasonable theory might send their grandmother into a tizzy of epic proportions, but instead she'd accepted Mac's challenges with patience and grace.

"No." Mac turned his gaze back to the picture of The Messiah, though not without Jack missing the haunted quality of the kid's eyes. "Because I no longer believe in fathers. Of any kind. Not ones I can see here on Earth and especially not invisible ones in Heaven."

Jack's chest squeezed with a hurt that had nothing to do with physical pain. "Mac…"

"But when I saw Harry come into the cafeteria," Mac continued, his voice softer, "I didn't know what else to do, and I remembered something Nana Beth said when she tried to explain The Trinity to me."

"I remember you told Nana Beth that the Godhead was harder to grasp than String Theory." Jack nodded, recalling that particular exchange with a slight grin. It was one of many religious conversations of late between the two that he'd witnessed, although his favorite was still when Mac brought a visual aid of a mustard seed to refute Beth's claims about faith of such size having the ability to move mountains.

"That's because Mr. Erickson explained String Theory, but he wouldn't even try to talk about how Nana said God was three and one when I asked him about it," Mac said solemnly.

"Mr. Erickson is a smart man," Jack conceded, his eyes moving to the glass image of Jesus, before going back to Mac.

"But even if I didn't understand all that Nana was saying that day, the part about Jesus being God's son stuck with me." Mac looked at Jack once more, the older man's heart speeding up when his little brother's blue eyes brimmed with unshed tears and his lip trembled. "Nana said it made him our brother."

Jack nodded, having to clear his throat before he could speak. "I can see how one could make that leap."

"I might not trust dads anymore, but I still believe in brothers." Mac looked once more to the stained glass. He blinked, sending two fat silent tears trickling down his flushed face. "So I came here to ask Jesus- as one brother to another- to save you, to bring you back, just like he did Mary and Martha's brother, Lazarus."

Jack's gut twisted as realization dawned. "But, bud…Lazarus was dead."

"I know." Mac nodded, dropping his head so that his chin practically rested on his chest, tears dripping from his crestfallen face to splash on his shirt as a sob broke through his stoicism. Jack now understood all too well why Mac had run.

"Oh, kid," Jack had to swallow the lump that had formed in the back of his throat. He reached for the boy, pulling Mac to him, ignoring the fiery pain the action sparked in his side as Mac completely let go of his attempts to be strong and threw his arms around Jack's middle, clinging tightly. Jack ran his fingers through the little boy's hair, not even feeling the pinch of the IV needle in his hand. "I didn't die, Mac. I'm right here. It's not like Mom. I'm not going anywhere. I'm not going to leave you."

Even as Jack made the promise he felt Mac tense at the vow, words so similar to the ones he'd sworn in the treehouse over a month before. Jack realized his misstep, hating like hell what he had to do next-the only thing that would ensure Mac kept believing in brothers-kept believing in Jack. He held the little boy tighter and told the truth. "At least not until September, bud. I'm not going anywhere until then."

Epilogue

Sometimes Jack was amazed at the resilience of children, or maybe he was just in awe of the little boy sitting on the bench beside him in the late afternoon sunshine. It had only been two weeks ago that Mac was sullen and withdrawn; plagued with a fear that had the ten year old volleying between stretches of silence and retreat and times when he wouldn't let Jack out of his sight. Jack had even awoken more than a few mornings to find his brother and Archimedes asleep in a pile of blankets and pillows beside his bed and the twosome had taken to camping outside the bathroom door when Jack went in for a shower.

One would have never known that Mac had experienced any kind of emotional upset by looking at him now. The second pack of Astronaut Ice Cream that he was currently working his way through might have had something to do with the gleam in his eye but Jack would gladly take the sugar-infused grin his kid brother shot him over the overwhelming fog of wariness he'd been walking around in since Jack's incident at Colton's.

"So what's next, bud?" Jack spread the map of the museum out before them. They'd already tackled the traveling math exhibit and played with lasers. The IMAX movie of a simulated trip to Mars had actually been interesting and despite Jack having had way to many MRE's to enjoy the idea of freeze dried ice cream he had loved introducing Mac to something the ten year old had never tried before.

"Can we see the Tessellation exhibit again or ride the bike with the square wheels." Mac wiped a hand over the back of his mouth, pointing to another area on the map. "I want to save the telescope for last."

"Don't forget we have tickets to the game." Jack had packed their Saturday full, not willing to take the time he still had with Mac for granted. He'd talked with his Delta Commander after he left the hospital, confirming that, despite the turn of events, Jack would still report back to duty in September as long as he had medical clearance.

"We should buy a few more bags of Astronaut Ice Cream to take with us," Mac suggested slyly.

"What's with the 'we'?" Jack smirked. "You got a mouse in your pocket? Last time I checked you sure didn't have any money in there."

"I think it would be nice of us to take Bozer some back too since you wouldn't let him come today." Mac glanced up at Jack. "And maybe Riley, too. It might help her not be so sad."

"I think _you_ should save some room for hotdogs but taking Bozer and Riley a souvenir back is a great idea, bud, as long as you don't take offense if Riley doesn't react too kindly to your peace offering." Diane's daughter had not been exactly friendly to Mac since her father was put in jail and her mother went back to New York to liquefy their assets to help with her husband's mounting legal fees. Mama Colton had also mentioned Diane needing some alone time to process what the future might hold for her and Riley now that Randy would be out of the picture for a while. Riley would be staying with Mama Colton for the duration of her summer break. Jack couldn't blame the little girl for being pissed at the turn of events that had dealt her a harsh and unfair hand, or even mad at him, but he wasn't okay with her taking it on Mac.

"I know she's not really angry with me." Mac shrugged. "Nana Beth says she's just hurt and skittish kind of like Archimedes."

"That's right." Jack nodded. "Just giver her some time."

"Nana says I can maybe help her because I should understand the kind of hurt Riley is feeling better than anyone."

"Only mom didn't choose to leave you, Mac." Jack was quick to point out. He understood where his Nana was coming from and he sure as hell wasn't trying to judge Diane Davis too harshly considering he didn't know her whole story but imagined it was a dark and scary one, but he didn't want Mac to take on a heavier burden than he already carried. "Your dad isn't a bad guy like Riley's father, either. He just made some bad choices."

"What if he is a bad guy and we don't know it? He might have run away because he'd one something wrong." Mac traced his finger over the colorful tessellations on the shiny brochure before him. "Bozer says super villains sometimes go into hiding and take on new identities to keep themselves safe."

"Bozer watches way too many movies as I have told you before." Jack reached out and tilted Mac's chin up so they were looking eye to eye. "Your dad isn't a villain."

"How do you know?"

"Because, Mom was a great judge of character and she loved your dad with all her heart." Jack moved his hand to run his fingers over Mac's hair, giving the kid a quick wink. "Haven't I taught you anything? Villians never get the pretty girl."

"Super heroes do, though." Mac looked up at Jack. "Like with you and Sarah."

Jack frowned, "What do you mean, me and Sarah?"

"She's been to the house twice," Mac pointed out. "Does that mean she's going to forgive you for going away to war and be your girlfriend again?"

"Sarah…" Jack hesitated not exactly sure that beneath the statue of Einstein in the Butterfly Garden of the MoMath Musuem was the place he wanted to have a conversation with his brother about why Sarah had dropped by their place recently. He had planned on doing it after the baseball game when they were back at their hotel or maybe even on their way back home, but decided now might be the time to just man-up and push through. "Mac, Sarah came to talk about you."

"Why would she come to talk about me?" Mac asked, a frown and flash of worry marring his earlier happiness.

"It's nothing bad, bud," Jack was quick to assure. "Harry asked her to look into some things for us while I was in the hospital and she wanted to let me know how it was coming along."

"How _what_ was coming along?"

Jack ran a hand over his mouth, seeing that he wasn't going to be able to quickly close Pandora's Box without having his little brother worry needlessly. "When your dad left, he signed some papers saying Harry could make any important decisions about you while James was away. He sort of made Harry the temporary person who watches out for you."

Mac bit his lip, giving a small nod. "When you were hurt the police said Harry had to come get me because he was my guardian."

"That's a legal way of saying it."

"Does that mean I'm an orphan now?"

"No, dude. It does not mean that." Jack reached out and squeezed Mac's shoulder. "It's just that with your dad away, Harry and I need to make sure one of us is watching out for you."

"You always watch out for me, Jack."

"Exactly." Jack took off his baseball cap, running a hand over his hair. He was unsure of how to proceed, or how to put things. Mac was plenty smart enough to understand the concepts, but it was not his intelligence Jack was worried about. It was his tender heart and fragile feelings concerning James's departure. "Sarah's boss has made it possible that I could take over as your guardian on a more permanent basis than what your dad arranged with Harry. If things work out I would have what they call full-custody of you, so that no one could take you away from me and Harry."

"Not even dad?" Mac asked tentatively.

Jack held his brother's gaze, unable to read the emotions swirling in the little boy's blue eyes. He wanted to tread lightly, but he also didn't want to lie. Mac had to know the whole truth to make the decision Jack was going to leave up to him. "James would have to take me to court to get you back, and even then, considering how he left, how long he's been gone, Sarah doesn't think he'd have much of a legal leg to stand on."

"Oh." Mac glanced away.

"Mac, I'd never keep you away from your dad if you wanted to see him." Jack was still pissed at James and would have a hell of a hard time forgiving the man for hurting his son, but he wouldn't let his anger get in the way of what was best for Mac. He waited for the kid to meet his gaze once more. "He's your father, my step-father, and I'd never do that to him unless he gave me a good reason."

"I don't want him to take me away from you and Harry. Not from Bozer or Archimedes either." Mac picked up the empty pack of Astronaut Ice Cream and started folding the edges of the foil package into a shape. "As much as I wanted him to come back when he first left, I was also afraid he'd come back and then make me leave with him and you and Harry wouldn't know where I was, just like we don't know where he is now. I knew how sad that would make you both."

Jack involuntarily tensed, his ribs and bruised chest reminding him that he was still healing. He'd had the same stark fear after finding out James had gone. There were nights he'd lain awake thinking the man would assuredly realize what a mistake he'd made, what he'd left behind and return to take his little boy back, leaving Jack with no clue as to where they had gone, or no real say in them coming back. "I would have found you, brother. No matter where he'd taken you, I'd have found a way."

If Mac had his doubts about that particular vow considering Jack hadn't had any luck with tracking James, he didn't let it show. Instead he smiled confidently at Jack. "We'll always find our way back to each other."

Jack returned the grin, taking an easy breath that eased some of his tension. "That's what brother's do."

"Will you still be my brother if you have full custody or will you be my dad?" Mac's voice dipped at the end, his obvious trepidation reminding Jack of his brother's revelation about no longer having faith in fathers.

"No matter what you decide I will _always_ be your big brother, bud." Jack wanted to make sure Mac was completely clear on that particular point. "If you decide you want Harry to stay your guardian I'll understand completely and be the luckiest brother around. If you want me to pursue the full custody avenue then I'll still be your brother only I'll be watching out for you and taking care of you in the way that a parent usually does. I win either way, kiddo, and we will always be family."

Mac went back to folding the wrapper for a moment, his hands manipulating the packaging into what looked like a small bird. James had always had a thing for Origami, making their mom different flowers and animals out of whatever scrap of paper he might pick up as if his hands had a mind of their own. When Mac glanced up at Jack, his expression was a familiar one, the kind he often had when he had a new idea or had grasped a novel concept. "So, you'd be like Jesus?"

Jack didn't exactly follow his brother's train of thought, which wasn't exactly unusual considering the way the kid's mind worked but he had to laugh at the ten year old's latest notion. "Nana Beth might say that is a very far stretch, if not a bit of blasphemy."

"I don't mean that you'd be perfect," Mac's mouth twitched as if he realized just how far from perfect Jack was and what a juxtaposition the comparison made. "I mean you'd be my brother, but also at the same time sort of my father, too."

Jack sighed, running a hand over his face. "I didn't mean to make this sound like it was as complicated as The Holy Trinity or String Theory, Mac. I promise you it's not. Really. Nothing between you and me changes. I will be whatever it is you need me to be. I'll play whatever role necessary to keep us togehter and to keep you safe."

"Can I think about it?" Mac asked, looking a little sheepish as if he were unsure of how his answer might affect Jack.

"I wouldn't expect a cerebral guy like yourself to make a decision any other way, dude." Jack gave Mac's shoulder another reassuring squeeze. "There's no hurry, bud, because like I said, I'm not going anywhere."

"Until September." Mac ducked his head, resuming his careful, concentrated folding of the foil.

"Right." Jack said softly."September."

"Could I go with you to the desert if you have custody?" Mac's head whipped up, his eyes holding a new gleam of hope.

"No." Jack shook his head adamantly. "It doesn't work that way. You'll still be living with Harry, nowhere near the war."

"Would you be able to come home more or maybe even stay with me all the time?"

Jack waned to say yes. Oh how he wanted to give his brother that assurance. Instead he shook his head, hating like hell when he could practically see the optimism leaving the ten year old's eyes. "I can't promise you that, kiddo. I know other single parents who serve. In fact one of the guys in my unit is a dad who has a daughter younger than you. She stays with his sister when he's on deployment."

"Would I change my name to Dalton?" The ten year old raised a furtive brow. "I could be MacGyver "Mac" Dalton?"

"Nice try." Jack smirked, reaching out to ruffle his brother's hair. "You're Angus Reed MacGyver and that's not going to change."

Mac smacked his hand away with a huff. "But you'll get to tell me what to do?"

"I already get to tell you what to do." Jack tapped his chest. "I don't need any paperwork or court order to be the boss of you, brother. That will never change."

"True," Mac conceded, glumly. He offered the tiny foil bird to Jack. "Then I guess I'm in."

"You're in?" Jack asked, surprised by the sudden and definitive proclamation, his heart leaping around a bit at what Mac's answer meant for them. "But I thought you had to think about it?"

"I did think about it." Mac said, easily, as if he'd solved a complex math formula in a matter of seconds. "My brain just works a lot faster than most people's including yours."

"That it does." Jack chuckled, turning the tiny bird over in his hand, the symbolism not lost on him. The metaphor of a parent giving their children wings and teaching them how to fly had his throat tightening, the awareness that all baby birds eventually left the nest causing his eyes to sting. Sarah's lawyer friend had cautioned Jack to consider his decision to go through with the custody petition as well, to think of the responsibility he was taking on. Jack hadn't even hesitated. There was nothing to think about on his side, but he didn't want Mac to have regrets. Jack quickly blinked away any trace of his ridiculous sentiment, blaming the painkillers he was still taking as he refocused on his brother. "Are you sure? That was quick even for a genius like you."

"It didn't take much brain power." Mac met his gaze. "I just had to do what Nana Beth says, and search my heart. Logic doesn't successfly apply to love, so it doesn't really work with us."

"That's a big leap for a man of science, brother." Jack's mouth twitched and he tried to keep a straight face as he pointed a finger up at the statue of Einstein. "What would your hero Albert think? I thought you guys tried to take feelings out of the equation."

"Usually that's a tried and true rule," Mac agreed, giving the science great a brief consideration before his blue eyes found Jack's face again. "But I'm willing to risk it for family. I'd do anything for you."

The lump was back, seemingly doubling in size. Jack had to clear his throat before he could speak and even then his voice was thick with emotion. "You're really wanting that Astronaut Ice Cream aren't you?"

"Maybe." Mac returned the smile, jumping up from the bench. He picked up the map of the museum. "After we ride the bike with the square wheels again and go use the telescope."

Jack snorted, glad his brother didn't realize that in that moment he could have probably asked him for his own rocket ship and Jack would have done everything in his power to make it happen. He tossed his arm over the little boy's shoulder as they made it towards the entrance that would lead them back into the museum.

"So you think Sarah's pretty, huh?" Jack teased, as they walked along in the warm sunshine.

"Well, her hair doesn't look like strands of gold filament, but her smile is nice." Mac observed seriously. He glanced up at his brother. "Does she smell like strawberry ice cream, too?"

"What?" Jack asked, caught off guard by the odd observation and even stranger question. He held the door open for his little brother who bounded through. "Why would you think that?"

"Penny Parker always smells like strawberry ice cream," Mac said thoughtfully, waiting for Jack to catch up with him and his train of thought. "I wasn't sure if it was just her or if girls came in different flavors."

"Do they ever, brother." Jack shook his head at his brother's completely innocent expression. "Do they ever."

"What's your favorite?" Mac asked, shooting Jack an earnest look, much like the one he often got when trying to define the parameters of a particular experiment.

"All of them." Jack answered without hesitation.

"I don't understand." Mac frowned.

"That's because I still have so much to teach you, Young Jedi." Jack grinned, pulling the little boy into a hard side hug that the ten year old didn't even try to evade.

Mac grinned up at him then, a happiness and mischievousness showing in his eyes that had been absent for far too long. "Mac, I am your _brrrather_ ," the little boy intoned in his best Darth Vader voice.

Jack guffawed at the kid's clever spin on the iconic line from their favorite Star Wars movie. Mac's own peels of boisterous laughter joined his, bringing several curious glances their way. Jack knew then as Mac gripped his hand and pulled him along towards the tricycle with the square wheels that whatever September brought and however far his orders might take him from home, that his brother was right. They would always find their way back to one another.

Then End…for now.


End file.
